The Proposal

by R. R. Banks

  He glared at me and opened the door. I stepped into the office and felt my heart flutter slightly when I saw the man from my computer screen smiling back at me from behind the desk.

  “Hello,” he said, standing up and reaching a hand across the desk toward me. “You’re Rue.”

  I nodded, approaching him and taking his hand.

  “Yes,” I said.

  “It’s really nice to meet you,” he said. “I’m Richard.”

  I glanced around the office, expecting to see the blond woman who had been pictured in the society pages Christopher and I had shamelessly pored through the night before.

  “Nice to meet you, too,” I said.

  “Flora will be joining us later, hopefully,” he said, sitting down and gesturing toward the chair across from him. “She had a few other appointments this morning.”

  “Oh,” I said.

  I wanted to point out to him that I hadn’t seen any other women in the waiting room and ask if that meant that he had chosen me, but that seemed a little desperate to me, so I restrained myself.

  “I’m sorry about the bait-and-switch situation yesterday. This is a really important decision for me. For us. And I want to make sure I make the right one.”

  I nodded.

  “I totally understand. Is there anything else that you want to know?”

  Stop staring at him. Stop staring at him. Stop staring at him. You cannot be attracted to him. You cannot be attracted to him.

  Richard looked down at the papers on his desk and flipped through them, his eyes scanning over them in the quickly flickering moves of speed reading that always made me feel dizzy just watching. He finished and looked up at me.

  “There are just a couple of questions that I want to ask you.”

  “Go ahead,” I said. “Anything you want to know. I’m an open book.”

  Probably a slightly crinkled paperback by an author you would never read, but an open book nonetheless.

  He looked at me for a few long seconds. He opened his mouth as if to ask something and then closed it, waiting for another few seconds.

  “What is your favorite planet and why?” he asked.

  “Earth because I live here and it’s the only one that we are currently aware of capable of sustaining life without the use of extensive technology, I’ve seen Biodome. I don’t want to be a part of any of that. If Earth’s not an option, I’ll say Jupiter because it’s huge but gets overlooked by all the Mars-lovers out there and I feel that it needs more attention.”

  ****

  Richard

  She didn’t miss a beat.

  “If you were an ice cream sundae topping, which would you be?”

  “Chopped nuts.”

  “Why?”

  “Because they add texture and make a sundae more interesting. Besides, all the syrup makes them super delicious, but they’re still nuts, so they’re healthy. That way after people eat the sundae, they might feel guilty about the other toppings and the ice cream, but they won’t feel as terrible about the chopped nuts. I would make it a little easier for people to enjoy a treat.”

  “How many roller coasters have you ridden in your life and did you keep your hands up the entire time?”

  Rue paused only for a second, her eyes looking up as if she was seeing something in her mind.

  “Ten. Some of them yes.”

  “Don’t you know that that’s dangerous?”

  “No, it isn’t. Roller coasters only have the illusion of being dangerous. That’s why they’re fun. They’re designed to make your subconscious believe that you are facing some sort of life-threatening situation involving a crashing vehicle or a large monster thrashing you around in its teeth. In reality, though, they are completely safe and have only the slightest risk of malfunction that would actually result in injury.”

  “And danger is your middle name,” I teased.

  “It could be. But it’s not. It’s Bella.”

  “Bella?” I asked, waiting for her to laugh or to at least tell me that she was joking. “Your name is Rue Bella?”

  Not laughing. Oh, my lord, she’s serious.

  “I don’t really want to talk about it.”

  I laughed at the serious look on her face and nodded.

  “Fair enough. Alright. One more question. A cat and three dogs walk down an alley and see a bowl of food. What color collar was the animal that got the food wearing?”

  “White with little fish, clearly.”

  “And why is that?”

  “Because it was obviously the cat that got the food. Cats always beat out dogs. Just the way it is. They’re sneaky and they have pointy fingers. Of course, the cat didn’t eat all the food and shared what was left with a dog that was wearing pink rhinestone collar.”

  “Because?”

  “Bitches always get what they want.”

  I threw back my head and laughed, both shocked and enthralled by her answer.

  And her.

  “What exactly is going on here?”

  The sound of Flora’s frosty voice stopped my laughter and I looked at her where she stood at the door.

  “Oh, Darling, you made it. This is Rue. I was just asking her a few questions.”

  “I can’t imagine what you would have asked her that would have warranted an answer like that.”

  I realized that she had heard Rue’s comment and felt a little hint of guilt. Flora had trusted me to run the interview on my own until she got there, and I felt like I had somehow let her down with the questions I’d chosen.

  Not that it really matters. Rue is the one. There isn’t anyone else who I even want to consider.

  I tried to explain the exchange, but Flora didn’t seem impressed.

  “I thought that you were going to ask her things that pertain to the arrangement,” she said.

  She was still standing beside the door, looking like she was preparing to escape and run away at any moment. I walked around the side of the desk and took her hands, kissing both.

  “I am,” I told her. “Don’t you want to know that the woman we choose to carry our baby can think quickly and has a creative mind?”

  “I’m not sure that her creativity has anything to do with her ability to get pregnant and deliver a child,” Flora said.

  Out of the corner of my eye I saw Rue’s eyes narrow briefly at Flora before she turned back around to look across the desk again.

  This was getting off to a great start.

  “I think it does,” I told her. “It means that she will be adaptable to whatever situations might occur, and less likely to close her mind to ideas that we might have about her prenatal care and birthing situation.”

  “Ideas?” Rue asked from behind me. “What kind of ideas?’

  “So, I suppose that you’re settled on her?” Flora asked. “None of the other women fit your standards?”

  “The other women did not make it through this phase.”

  I would try to explain the whole situation to her when we got home later.

  I expected Flora to get angry. I knew that she didn’t like Rue. She didn’t trust her and thought that she was below her. It was obvious just in the way that she looked at her. But instead, she offered a smile and walked around me to where Rue was sitting.

  “It’s wonderful to meet you, Rue,” she said. She reached a hand toward Rue, who looked at her for a few unsure seconds and then took her hand cautiously. Flora pulled her to her feet and wrapped Rue into a hug that was so out of character for her I felt the need to take a step back. “Thank you so much for being willing to do this. You are an angel for giving of yourself so much to help make a dream come true for me and for my Richie.”

  Chapter Seven

  Rue

  I was breathless as I walked across the lobby, my stilettos clicking on the floor so that the sound reverberated throughout the empty space. I didn’t know why Richard would have called me to meet him in the middle of the night, but the sound of his voice even over the phone was enoug
h to make me tremble and I knew that no matter what his reason, I needed to be with him. The floor beneath my feet had been polished until it glistened, and I knew the reflection beneath me would show an image of the hem of my long coat and the fact that I wore nothing beneath it.

  Richard had only said that he needed to see me when he called me. He didn’t tell me why or what he wanted to talk about, but it didn’t matter. The moment that I heard him say that he needed me, I was fully and utterly open to him. I had belonged to him from the moment that I saw him, and I was ready to offer myself over to him, to show him everything that he could enjoy with me. Wearing the long coat and absolutely nothing else was my way of ensuring that my intentions couldn’t be misunderstood. No matter what it was that he wanted to say to me. No matter why he beckoned me to the office building well after the final employees there had left and the cleaning staff had performed their duties for the night. I wanted to make sure that the moment that I walked into the office I would be able to show him exactly what was on my mind and keep me from holding back, restraining myself even though I knew that I should.

  This wasn’t a good idea. This wasn’t something that I should be doing. The voice in the back of my mind told me that. It told me that the last thing that I should be doing was telling Richard how much I wanted him, that just the thought of him made me wet and my body ache for him to touch me. I hadn’t been able to get him out of my mind since the very first moment that I saw him on my computer screen and my desire for him had only gotten more intense when I walked into the office and actually got to see him. Thoughts of him, his body, his mouth, his hands on me, had taken over every moment of my day. I hadn’t been able to concentrate on anything but my fantasies and the powerful pull from within me that seemed to take over my mind, my heart, and my body. I didn’t care who he was or how we had met. I didn’t care what was expected of our relationship or that he technically had another woman in his life. I had seen the way that they looked at each other. I had tried to tell myself that he loved her and that she loved him, but the way that they looked at each other told me that that wasn’t the case. There was no warmth between them. No matter what they said to each other or the way that he tried to show affection to her. It was obvious to me that there wasn’t any of the intense love or lasting bond that there should be between them.

  Beyond that, I had seen the way that he looked at me. From the first time that our eyes met and I sat down across the desk from him, I knew that he felt the same thing that I did. I saw the heat there, the attraction, the curiosity. He had done everything he could not to show me what he was feeling and to deny it to himself as much as to me. I wasn’t going to let that happen anymore.

  His words were few when he called me, but that didn’t change the tension that I heard in his voice. It was there, strong and burning, simmering beneath the words. When he told me that he needed me to come to the office, he was telling me that he needed me. He wanted me. Even if he didn’t want to admit it. Even if he wasn’t calling me to him to act on it, I was going to make sure that he was left with no questions in his mind or his heart.

  I crossed through the first set of glass doors and then the next. The lights were dim in this portion of the building, and I felt like I was moving deeper into a forbidden world, something that was going to exist only for us and that could never see the light of day.

  The waiting room was quiet and empty, almost as though it were slumbering. I passed through it, my eyes flickering for an instant to the empty chair that I had inhabited several times before. I didn’t need to wait to have my name called this time. I passed through the door and down the hallway toward Richard’s office. The door was standing partially open and I could see a slice of light spilling out into the hallway. I paused outside and drew in a breath before reaching up and gently rapping on the door.

  “Come in,” Richard’s husky voice said immediately.

  I pressed the door open and stepped inside. Richard was sitting in his massive chair behind the desk, his eyes burning into me the moment that I came into view. He said nothing as I stepped in and closed the door behind me. I kept my eyes locked on him as I walked into the center of the room and released the knot of the belt at my waist. Richard’s gaze followed my fingers as the knot opened and I pushed the belt away before bringing my hands to the buttons of the coat. I moved slowly, letting my fingers gradually open each button to gradually reveal my body beneath.

  Richard’s eyes found my skin and I could see the hunger grow within them. When I reached the final button, I opened the coat and pushed it back over my shoulders, letting it slip down my arms and pool on the floor at my feet. Richard pressed his hands to the surface of the desk in front of him and stood from his chair. He paused only for a second to look at me and then rushed around the side of the desk and to me. In an instant, I was in his arms and his mouth was on mine. It was a crushing, breathless kiss, our mouths hungrily seeking as much of one another as we could possibly find. Our tongues tangled, and my hands tore at his clothes, trying to find the warmth of his bare skin.

  Richard took his hands from my body to release his belt and tear at his button and zipper. I felt his deliciously hard cock spring out and brush against my belly. My body responded with a rush of hot fluid, readying me for him. My belly twitched, and I could feel my walls opening, seeking him. I couldn’t wait to feel him inside me. Richard wrapped his arm tightly around my waist and swept me up off of my feet and spun us around, so he could carry me to the desk. Setting me on the edge, he pushed me onto my back and grabbed the tops of my thighs, yanking me forward so that my legs lifted up and he pushed them apart. The movement opened me to him, making me feel both vulnerable and intensely aroused.

  The feeling of Richard’s breath on my hot, wet core sent a thrill through me and I arched up toward him. His tongue dragged through my folds and I cried out at the sensation that rocked through me. He focused the tip on my clit for a few overwhelming seconds and then plunged his tongue inside me, bringing his thumb up to massage me in tight circles. My body shook, and I clawed at the desk beside me, looking for something to hold onto to try to find some control. The pressure building throughout my hips and stomach was almost painful in its strength and I couldn’t hold myself back. As he shoved his tongue so far within me that his mouth closed down over my center, I felt the rush of an intense orgasm wash over me and I screamed out, reaching up to dig my fingers through his hair to at once grip him closer to me and pull him away to ease the shuddering power of the feeling.

  I was still gasping through the waves of sensation when I felt Richard stand up, heard the sound of a condom package ripping, and then felt him push inside of me. The sensation of his hard, thick cock filling me so much was almost painful and sent me into a new crashing cascade of tremors. I opened my eyes to look at Richard. His open shirt pressed back over his shoulders seemed to accentuate the rippling of his muscles, making him look unchained and even sexier. There was no hesitation in his movements. His fingertips dug into my hips as he pounded into me hard and fast.

  Richard’s eyes were fiery as they stared down at me. His jaw was clenched tightly, and I saw sweat beading on his forehead, gliding down his cheeks. He grunted from deep within his chest with each thrust and I cried out at the slam of his hips against mine. I was still wearing my shoes and he straightened, grasping the high, sharp heels so he could press my legs back further and open even more. I reached over my head to grip the edge of the desk and hold myself in place so that the power of his strokes didn’t push me off.

  This position drove him even deeper and I let out an unbridled moan as his masterful cock reached a place inside of me that had never been touched. Richard’s thrusts grew harder and faster, his pace becoming feverish as the sounds coming through his gritted teeth grew louder and more forceful. My head arched back but I felt him take one hand away from my shoe and grasp my face, guiding it back into place so that he could stare down at me. He held my cheek, his thumb stroking across my cheekbone
tenderly in a stark contrast to the thrust of his hips.

  Suddenly he shoved into me with a final thrust that put him as far within me as he could be and he let out a roar as I felt his cock throb. The sensation pushed me over the edge and my body clenched around his, collapsing again into another blinding orgasm that squeezed down on him and made my fingernails claw into the muscles of his upper arms. We paused in breathless, shaking ecstasy until our bodies cooled and relaxed, easing down from the blistering peaks that we had achieved.

  Richard lowered my legs down onto either side of him and wrapped his arm around my waist to pull me up to sitting so that he could kiss me. I melted into the kiss, letting my arms fall around his neck to hold him close, and pressing my body nearer to his to remain connected for as long as I could. I was running my fingers down his back, feeling the muscles through the sweat-damp fabric of his shirt, when I felt the muscles disappear, replaced by something soft. I opened my eyes and instead of seeing Richard’s chiseled, sexy face staring back at me, I saw darkness.

  I blinked, trying to make my eyes focus, and gradually shadows and shimmers of light appeared above me. I realized that I was no longer sitting on the desk but laying in my bed, stroking the pillow beside me. The sheets around me were damp and the air felt thick and warm, but the more I felt myself pulling up out of the deep sleep that had crafted the intense dream, the cooler the air felt. I sat up and reached down to the end of the bed, grabbed the blanket that was folded at the foot, and pulled it up over me as I lay back down, curling it up around myself.

  What the hell was that all about?

  Chapter Eight

  Rue

  Dear Baby,

  You are going to be so beautiful. I met your parents yesterday and I can imagine their features coming together to make you and it’s amazing. Your eyes will be so blue, and you will have thick, perfect hair. You’ll be tall, which I can tell you as someone who has difficulty seeing the signs in a grocery store when I’m walking down the aisles, will be a blessing. It’s strange to be thinking about what you are going to look like now, still before you even exist. One day you will. One day you will be ready to face the world and you will come into it and everyone will get to look at you and see just how wonderful you really are. I am trying not to create an image of you in my mind because I know that there’s no real way that I could come up with what you are actually going to look like and then it will seem like you are a stranger when you’re born.