An Unconditional Love (BWWM Romance Book 1)

by Shanade White

  “I don’t care what you say. I am taking you to the airport no matter what you say,” she said with a smile.

  He leaned in and brushed her lips with his.

  “This is too much to ask,” he said softly.

  “Really? What am I supposed to do while you are away doing God knows what? I mean, you are going to be away for a whole week. Are you going to deny me the last forty minutes in heaven?” she asked as she looked at me.

  “I guess you will always be the one to win arguments in this relationship,” he said as he looked at her.

  “Aww, you just said that we are in a relationship,” she said.

  He moved closer to her and smiled.

  “Well, that’s what is going on right? We are in a relationship, aren’t we?” he asked. She shrugged and leaned in to kiss him.

  “So, what time is your flight?” she asked.

  He looked at his watch and shrugged.

  “In around three hours,” he said looking at her seated in nothing but her underwear. “You should probably get dressed.”

  “Well, we have to head out then,” she said climbing off the bed. She pulled on a pair of blue jeggings and a white flowered halter top. She held her hair in a high bun and retouched her lip gloss before she grabbed her sunglasses from the table.

  “Ready?” Daniel asked as Erica put on a pair of black peep toe heels. She figured that she was not going to go anywhere so she thought that putting on a pair of fancy shoes was the best her day was going to get. She walked into the bedroom and nodded.

  “Ready,” she said in a low voice as she looked around. “Where are the keys to the car?” “They are right…” Daniel started as he turned around. The way she looked blew him away. “Whoa,” he said in a soft voice.

  “What?” she asked.

  “You look amazing.”

  “Really? I haven’t done anything different.”

  “Most people just say thanks,” he said with a smile.

  She looked at him and nodded.

  “Well, thanks babe. But if you keep looking at me like that you are going to strip me naked and be late. So, hand them over,” she said holding her hand out. Daniel walked towards her pulling his suitcase behind him. He handed her the car keys and looked into her eyes.

  “You know, you really don’t have to come,” he said.

  She shrugged and rolled her eyes.

  “We are most definitely going to the airport babe. So you can stop trying to change my mind,” she said.

  “So, you promise not to cry? Because if I see a single tear, I will change my mind,” he said as he looked at her.

  “Babe, this is the future of your company and you did not drag me as eye candy to some meeting in Caracas for nothing. So shut up already,” she said with a smile. “Plus, what do you think the sunglasses are for anyway?” she asked.

  Daniel frowned and then raised an eyebrow.

  “Um…sun?” he asked. She shrugged and began walking out with him following her. “So, you’re driving? I’m not entirely sure how I feel about that,” he started as they walked into the elevator.

  “Why?”

  “My sister made me fear all women drivers. I mean, the girl is ruthless on the road. She could be the very thing that sparked road rage in America,” he added shaking his head.

  “Really, that bad?” she asked as she looked at him.

  “I am very surprised that I never ended up in some kind of driver’s therapy. Or is it road victims’ therapy,” he said, a faraway look in his eyes. She looked at him as the elevator doors opened and shook her head.

  “Well, I am not Melanie. So you can relax,” she said as they walked out.

  “You remembered her name,” Daniel said with a smile as he looked at her.

  She smiled and shrugged.

  “Was I supposed to ignore the fact that I have a great memory?” she asked.

  He looked at her as they climbed into the car.

  “You could be the most awesome girl I have ever known,” he said.

  She looked at him and flashed him a smile as she buckled herself in. “Could be?”

  “You are definitely the best,” he said.

  She put on her sunglasses and revved the engine to life.

  “Good choice,” she said as she pulled out of the hotel parking lot. She was relatively quiet during the short drive to the airport. She had no idea what she was supposed to say. Every thought in her head was the fact that he was going and she was going to be alone. She would steal glances at him every so often and he was noticing it. He took her free hand in his and pressed his lips into her small hand.

  “This is going to be the hardest week of my life,” he said in a soft voice.

  “It’s going to be the hardest one for me too,” she said as she looked at him. He looked at her but she was already concentrating on the road. She was trying hard not to cry. She had her eyes fixated on the road. Like she had predicted, she was already getting emotional.

  By the time she pulled in to the airport parking lot, she already felt like she was saying goodbye to her world. And it was going to be hard for her too, harder than she ever thought possible. She took a long deep breath and turned to look at him. “You know this is going to be the first time in two months that we are going to be apart?” she asked.

  “I know,” he said in a low voice.

  “So, one whole week, huh?” she said in a whisper.

  “Hey, no crying. You are going to make me sad,” he said as he held her face in his hands. She looked at him and shrugged. “This is why I hate goodbyes,” he said as he pressed his forehead to hers. She moaned sadly and shook her head.

  “So, let’s just get this over with,” she said as she climbed out of the car. Daniel felt bad seeing her this said. He climbed out of the car and walked over to where she was. He took her hand in his and together, they walked to the departures terminal. “So, let me guess. You are taking some Arabian flight?” she asked as she looked at him.

  “You know it,” he smiled and nodded. “Apparently I cannot take the company jet on personal business.”

  “Maybe it’s time you got your own personal jet,” she teased.

  “Actually, I did and then somehow my sister got it for quote unquote an errand. Let’s just say that any time I need it, it is always unavailable. Some kind of joint venture with my mom who if I must add, is always on a trip,” he said.

  “I guess it’s just the thing with family,” she said with a smile.

  “Now, listen. I knew that everything was going to be hard on you and I wanted to make things easier on you. So I already got us tickets to Belize on Qatar Airways. Business class,” he said.

  “Daniel Reese, are you trying to bribe me?” she laughed as she looked at him.

  “Maybe. But it all depends,” he said looking at her.

  “On what?” she asked as she looked at him. He stepped closer and slipped an arm around her waist.

  “Is it working?” he asked in a soft voice.

  “Pretty much,” she said in a low voice. He smiled and brought his head down to meet her lips in a long luxurious kiss. She looked at him when he pulled away. Her heart was beating hard and fast. “So, this is it then, huh?” she asked as she looked into his eyes.

  “One week, baby. Just seven days,” he said in a soft voice.

  “See you in seven days then,” she said as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Daniel held her tightly inhaling the sweet lavender scent that was her shampoo. What he didn’t know, was that she was also doing the same, inhaling his familiar manly scent. She pulled away and kissed him again. “If I don’t go now, I swear the water works are going to come on,” she said.

  He smiled and nodded. “I love you.”

  “I love you more. Call me as soon as you land.”

  “You know I will,” he said before he walked into the terminal. She looked at him as he went through security. He looked at her and gave her a small wave before he went on to get checked in. He could no
t help but feel sad as he walked to the bench. He sat down and wondered if this was what he wanted to do. He had to go, otherwise everything would fall apart. He shrugged and pulled out his phone. As he scrolled his contact list, he wondered if he was on the right track. On the one hand, he had to go back and sort this out. After all, a coffee maker that would retail for seventeen grand was definitely worth fighting for but at the same time, he was a CEO. And that meant that he was supposed to sit back while his minions did everything.

  He had been sitting there for two hours when it finally hit him. “I think I just figured this out,” he thought as he called his assistant. Well, it’s ten o’clock right now which means it’s around half past four back at home,” he thought as he listened to the phone ring. “Lena, hi. Get the accounts team, R&D and the CFO in the board room in five. I’ll call you back. And you better all be there,” he said before he hung up. He pulled his iPad out of his bag. “Damn this connection,” he thought as he looked at the connection status on his tablet. “Finally,” he thought when the connection finally went through. He made a call to the office and waited for the connection to go through.

  “Hello, Mr. Reese. We are all here as requested,” Lena said.

  “Good. I wanted to let you all know that I will not be coming back,” he started. He noticed everyone grumbling and he raised his finger. “Well, you better listen to me because I have made up my mind. I pay you to take care of things so that tweak that needs to be done, R&D, get on it or you can kiss your jobs goodbye. And the money that we don’t have for the tweaks, accounts better take care of that or it’s your jobs,” he said. “And the new domestic coffee maker better be unique by the time you call me or again, it will be your jobs,” he added matter of factly. “Capiche?” he asked looking at his screen. He saw everyone looking around the board room.

  “Yes sir, Mr. Reese,” Lena said on behalf of everyone.

  “Good. Now get to work,” he said before he hung up. He noticed the people seated around giving him a weird look. “I’m just on my…uh…honeymoon and they…you know,” he said uncomfortably.

  “Qatar Airways, flight 220 to St. Louis via London now boarding,” Daniel heard a voice over the PA doing the familiar boarding call. A smile played on his lips as he began walking to the other direction.

  “Sir, the boarding gate is on the other side,” an airport worker said to him.

  “I’m not leaving,” he said smiling as he walked. He could not wait to see the look on Erica’s face when she saw him. It was going to be the surprise of a lifetime. What he didn’t know was what had happened to Erica when he walked away…

  Chapter 6

  Erica was looking at the back of Daniel’s body as he walked away. She was fighting to keep from running after him. It might have been romantic in the movies but in real life it was downright awkward and sad. And stupid. She gave him a little wave with her fingers when she saw him waving at her. She waited until he was through security before she looked around and wondered if she could get something to eat. She noticed a coffee shop on one corner and walked towards it. She had already made up her mind about what she wanted to do. She walked up to the counter and looked at the array of decadent cakes on display. She wanted everything.

  “Can I help you miss?” a young lady behind the counter asked in a heavy Greek accent.

  “Yeah. I want something frosty, sweet and fattening,” she said. The woman looked at her and raised an eyebrow. “My boyfriend just left,” she said.

  “Oh so you ended relationship?” the woman asked.

  Erica smiled and shook her head.

  “No, it’s nothing like that. He had to go and take care of some business and I have to stay here and wait. So I want to eat my feelings,” she said as she looked at the cakes on display.

  “Ah, you’re American,” the woman smiled.

  Erica looked up and shrugged.

  “Yeah. I guess we are pretty well known when it comes to confectioneries and deep fried food,” she said. The woman smiled and pointed to some cupcakes. “Oh my God, are those red velvet?” she asked.

  The woman smiled at her and nodded.

  “You want those?” she asked.

  “Yes please. I’ll have two and oh…that blueberry forest looks perfect. So I’ll have a slice of that too,” Erica said with a smile. She was salivating as she watched the attendant pack her order. She could not wait to get back to the hotel and just dive in. “Or I could just get started in the car. Hell, it’s a rental,” she thought as she pulled out a bill from her pocket. “Will this cover it?” she asked as she handed the woman the bill.

  “More than enough,” the woman said as she put two boxes on the counter.

  “Thank you so much,” Erica said as she took the change and boxes from the woman. She was struggling to balance the two boxes in her small hands as she walked to the parking lot. She had a spring in her step as she walked and she hated that it was all about cake and nothing to do with Daniel. “Well, that’s what happens when you leave a woman alone in a strange country,” she thought as she walked.

  “Erica,” she heard a familiar voice call out. She felt a chill run down her spine when she heard her name called out. She knew that voice, a little too well. She wanted to turn around and see who it was but something told her that she had to keep walking. She quickened her pace as she walked. “Erica,” she heard again making her stop in her tracks. Her heart was beating hard in her chest as she turned around to come face to face with her worst nightmare. It was Eli, standing right in front of her. As she looked at him, she had such a mixture of emotions. She wanted to scream at him and slap him and probably even shoot him right between the eyes but as she stood there, she was numb. She could not talk, she could not walk. She could not do anything. “Hi,” Eli said smiling at her.

  She took a long deep breath and shrugged.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” she asked.

  “I needed to see to you,” he said as he looked at her.

  “Well, there are so many ways of doing that without actually stalking me. Facebook, Instagram and if you manage to get through to me, Skype,” she said.

  “You blocked me on Skype,” Eli said as he looked at her.

  “Do you blame me?” she asked. He looked at her and took a step forward. “Stay away from me,” she said taking a step back.

  He shook his head and put his hands up.

  “I’m sorry. I just want us to have a grown up conversation,” he said.

  She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

  “What the hell are you even doing here?” she asked again.

  “I told you, I need to talk to you,” he said.

  “No, I mean here in Athens. Why are you here?” she asked as she looked at him.

  “I was on a business trip and I ran into your sister. She told me you were here,” he said.

  Erica raised an eyebrow.

  “So you thought, I’ll just go all the way to Greece and track her down? Gee, Eli. Psycho much?” she asked as she walked to the parking lot with Eli following close. “Stay away from me, Eli. If you know what’s good for you, you are going to leave me alone,” she said as she walked towards the white rental Buick. She opened the door and put the two boxes on the passenger seat before she walked round to the driver’s seat.

  “So I come all this way and you don’t even want to talk to me?” Eli asked.

  She sighed, her hand on the door handle and looked at him.

  “I didn’t tell you to come all this way now, did I?” she asked as she opened the door. Eli put his hand on the door and slammed it back shut. “What the fuck…” she started saying before she looked at Eli.

  “You have to hear me out,” Eli said.

  Erica forced out a laugh.

  “I have to hear you out?” she asked as she looked at him. “Why? Does listening to you give me more time on earth or something like that? I don’t think so,” she said as she climbed into the seat. She pulled the seatbelt and buckled herself
in. She was angry and really getting worked up.

  “Erica, please,” he said in a soft voice.

  She shook her head and put the key in the ignition.

  “The time for me listening to you is over, jackass,” she said as she turned the car on. She was breathing hard and heavy as she backed out of the parking lot. In her rearview mirror, she saw Eli run off to some other side. She breathed a sigh of relief as she began driving back to the hotel. She reached for one of the boxes and got one of the cupcakes. She sighed loudly when she bit into the rich cream cheese frosting. It was perfect. The lady at the cake shop had not lied when she suggested the cupcakes. Somehow, the drive back seemed longer. She switched the radio on and hummed along as she turned the last corner to the hotel. She climbed out of the car slowly and handed the key to the valet as she balanced the two boxes in her hand. She was just about to walk into the hotel when she heard Eli’s voice towering over people’s murmurs and the engines of the cars speeding off. She took a long deep breath and turned around. “You have now graduated from idiot to psycho Eli. You better stay away from me or I swear I will call the cops on your ass,” she said. Eli quickly walked up to where she was and held her hand.

  “Hear me out. That’s all I want, for you to hear me out,” he said as he looked at her.

  She shook her head and pulled her hand away. She did not want to hear anything from him. There was no good that would ever come from listening to him. Her heart was beating harder and faster than ever. Without knowing it, she was shaking as she looked at him.

  “I have nothing to say to you and you…you know where I…” her voice trailed off as she looked around. She would have to move to another hotel before Daniel came back. She never, ever wanted to have this conversation.

  “Bumblebee,” Eli started. She shook her head.

  “Don’t call me that. You lost your right to call me that a long time ago and for the love of God, I moved on, Eli. You should too,” she said as she looked at him. He held her hand again and she tried yanking it off but this time round, she couldn’t. He was holding her a little tighter than he had before. “Let me go,” she said in a soft voice.