Burying myself in Book Boyfriend Inc. was the only way not to get consumed with worry for the women in my life. There was plenty to do while getting a new company off the ground. Janine spent a few hours coaching the new hires on the finer points of acting like gentlemen. It had turned out to be the breaking point for the candidates who didn’t make the cut in the first round of the interviews. Janine was horrified at their table manners and general lack of civility when it came to treating their dates like ladies. She’d said, and probably rightly so, that our clients would end up demanding their money back if we sent them on dates with a couple of the guys she had interviewed.
Learning the accounting software she loaded onto my laptop that morning when she came over was proving to be an even bigger challenge. It was confusing and simple at the same time. Everything seemed very obvious once she explained it, and I felt like I was doing nothing but frustrating her with my questions. Maybe hiring someone to do the books was a better idea than trying to do them myself. But we needed to mind the budget while we got up and running, so I had to do as much as I could myself. I looked at the chart of accounts one more time, trying to understand why it was set up the way it was.
The day flew by, and before I knew it, Janine was packing her stuff up and heading home. Which meant Skye would be home any minute too. I considered doing the cowardly thing and leaving, but no sooner had Janine cleared the front sidewalk than Little Mary Sunshine came barreling through the door, hair pulled back in a severe bun, cheeks red from the late-day sun. Or at least I thought.
Once she was inside and took off her sunglasses, I saw she was crying.
“Hey, what’s going on? You okay?” I loved Skye, and my concern was genuine.
“Do. Not. Speak. To. Me.”
I just stared at her. Whatever was going on, I wasn’t sure I wanted to be involved, judging by the tone of her voice.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” she challenged.
“You just told me not to. I can’t keep up with you, Skye.”
“She fucking got my job! Are you happy now?”
“Who did? What job? What are you talking about?” Honestly, I was trying to keep up. I was pretty sure she was talking about Bailey, but Bailey had told me just that morning she worked in the finance director’s office.
“Your sugar mama. My job. The job she was supposed to help me get! Remember all that? Don’t play fucking dumb with me, Oliver! It doesn’t suit you!”
“You need to stop this nonsense.” I shook my head, attempting to walk away from her. But she grabbed my arm.
“It’s not nonsense! How does a no one come from nowhere and take a job they know nothing about? It makes zero sense! Everyone in the entire office is whispering about her now. Convinced she’s sleeping with the mayor or sucking him off or something! Maybe she has serious dirt on him. I don’t know, but none of it makes sense!” Little bits of spittle had collected in the corners of her mouth from her hysterical shouting.
“Maybe there’s more—”
“Do not defend her!”
“Well, someone has to! Do you expect me to sit here and listen to you rail on her over and over? I won’t do it, Skye.” I had had enough.
“Not even for your best friend? Not even then, Oliver? You’re trading a piece of ass for your best friend? I can’t take it anymore. I want you out of this house.” She folded her arms across her chest in defiance.
“That’s fine. When you come to your senses, let me know.”
“No, I mean for good. Take your things and go. I know you got the lease renewal. I won’t be signing it with you. You can take your things and go. Make other arrangements. Our lease, like our friendship, is over.”
“Skye…don’t be like this…”
“Goodbye, Oliver.”
Then she went into her room and closed the door. The patented Skye Delaney kiss-off. I knew, above all else, she did “you’re dead to me” better than anyone I’d ever seen. When she said it, she meant it.
A quick text to Bailey let her know I’d be coming over late. It was going to take a while to pack up my stuff. Even though we had until the end of the month on our current lease, I didn’t want to be in the condo any longer than I needed to be. I could get a lot done that night and finish the rest the following day. Strangely, Bailey didn’t mention a single word about work drama while we were texting.
Another message went out to Janine letting her know we’d need a new place for base camp for BBI. She offered her place, but I said I’d rather not be in the complex at all, that way I wouldn’t chance running into Skye. She said she had another property we might be able to use, and she would get back to me by the morning. She and I were going to have to really go over the finances closely so I could determine how much I could afford to pay in rent. I would probably need to find a roommate again, and the whole idea pissed me off. Skye and I had had such an easy living arrangement worked out for so long; starting all over with someone else was going to suck.
I was exhausted by the time I pulled back into the garage behind Bailey’s house. She stood at the back door, waiting for me as I came up the walk, a dusty-pink silk robe skimming the middle of her thighs.
“You are a vision for my weary eyes.” I nuzzled between her breasts from the bottom step while she stood just inside the back door, putting her at the perfect height for my face to rest on her chest.
“I thought you sounded like you needed a little extra TLC when we talked. I ran a bath upstairs.”
“Are you for real? Am I dreaming? Please don’t wake me if I am.” I kissed her thoroughly, not wanting to stop when she pulled away.
“I think I’m the one who doesn’t ever want to wake up. Come on. Let me take care of you for a change.” She pulled me by the hand, all the way upstairs to her master suite, and undressed me in front of her ridiculously large garden tub before dropping her own robe and getting in.
We took turns washing each other, lathering and buffing each other’s body. Until the water was too cool to be enjoyable, we stayed in the tub and talked about everything under the sun, except the enormous elephant in the room.
While we dried off and got ready for bed, I finally broke down and asked her what had happened at the office.
“It would be better if you didn’t get involved, Oliver.”
“I think it’s too late for that. Skye dragged me right into the middle of it this afternoon.”
“Is that what led to the abrupt packing?” she asked before starting to brush her teeth.
“Kind of. Well, yes, actually. Although, I think that was in the cards, no matter what. We both got an email from our landlord that our rent was going up and they wanted us to sign a longer lease. But after whatever happened at the office today, she said I was clearly choosing you over her and she never wanted to see me again.”
She rinsed and said, “That seems a bit extreme, no? And, frankly, immature. Why is she making you a part of all of this?”
“Skye is a very loyal friend. She expects the same in return.”
“But you’ve been nothing but loyal as well.” Her defense of me was endearing.
“Apparently, she sees it differently.”
“I’m sorry about all of this. I feel terrible.”
“Just tell me what’s going on. At least then I’ll understand why my best friend hates me.” I took my turn at brushing while she explained.
“The mayor appointed me to my deceased husband’s job today. It’s just until the election is held in November. That’s less than two months away. He thinks I’m qualified, which I am, and he thinks I know what projects William was working on when he passed, which I do. He thinks I know the relationships William had built with key members of the city, which I do. In theory, it makes perfect sense for me to fill the position in the interim. However, the go-getters who want the job permanently are very upset at the moment. Skye is one of those people. And that is understandable as well. But, as I’ve explained to you before, there are reasons th
ings happen the way they do. And sometimes, trusting the process is the hardest part of any experience. That is a life lesson that is best learned early, and with grace and gratitude, neither of which your best friend is exemplifying at the moment.”
We both finished in the bathroom and moved toward the bedroom.
“Former best friend,” I added dryly.
“I’m sorry about that, Oliver. I hope she’ll come around when the dust settles. I have a pretty good feeling she will. As long as you keep the light on.”
“I’m not following.” I looked at her quizzically.
“Well, I mean as long as you’re open to forgiving her. She may need a good friend in the months to come. You once told me that she was there for you when no one else was. She may need you to return that favor. So maybe don’t write her out of your story just yet.” She pulled the covers back on her side of the bed, and I did the same.
“You amaze me, you know that?” I watched her while I climbed onto the thick mattress, letting the weight of the day sink into the memory foam.
“Why do you say that? I just told you I took your best friend’s job out from under her nose, in turn causing her to kick you out of your house and declare you excommunicated, and you say I amaze you?” She got in and pulled the covers up to her chin.
“But then you went on to hint at some cosmic reason for things happening the way they do and that my very rude and nasty best friend—pardon me, former best friend—just may need a shoulder to cry on in the near future and I should keep a box of tissues at the ready. I see that as amazing.” I kissed the tip of her nose as we lay facing one another, huddled under the covers.
“I have an idea. I want you to really think about it, though, before you say no. Okay?” She looked like a little girl as excitement lit up her eyes.
“Okay.”
“What would you think about moving in here with me?”
I opened my mouth to answer and then closed it. My knee-jerk reaction was to immediately say yes, but I didn’t want to seem overenthusiastic. And Skye’s rude comment about Bailey being my sugar mama came to mind. It was the last thing I wanted people to think of our relationship.
“Okay, I’ll think about it.” She looked deflated when I gave my response. “Hey, I just don’t want you to be making an offer because you’re feeling bad about what went on with Skye tonight. I want you to be sure it’s what you want too.” I felt impressed for thinking so quickly on my feet.
“Trust me. I’m very sure. I wouldn’t have made the offer otherwise.”
“Well, let’s give it a couple of days, and then we can talk about it again. Let’s say, by the end of the week, when I need to be out of the condo? Then I will know where I’m moving my stuff to. Deal?” I offered.
“Don’t feel pressured.”
“I don’t. I want you to know that I’d love to live here with you. But I want to give you a little more time to really think about it.”
“I already said I have. I’ve fantasized about it a lot, actually, since the first time you and I met.”
“Really?” The word “fantasy” sent my mind down a whole different path. “Tell me about your fantasy. What was it like? Did I come home like tonight and you were waiting for me?”
“Mmmm-hmmm.” She sounded coy.
I slid my hand beneath the covers, searching until I found her body. I pulled her silky pajama top up and laid my palm across her stomach. Her skin was warm against mine.
“What else? Did we bother with dinner, or did we go right upstairs to bed?” I teased.
“We went to bed, always straight to bed,” she whispered.
“We’re smart, after all.”
I moved on top of her, kissing her neck, biting her shoulder where I could pull the silky top away far enough. I sat back and unbuttoned her shirt, exposing her pert breasts to the cool air of the room. Her nipples responded by stiffening. I danced my fingers across the tight peaks, pinching lightly as her eyes fell closed. I followed with my mouth, licking and teasing the firm points until she moaned with pleasure. Resisting the urge to sink my teeth into her breast took all of my restraint. I wanted to mark her again as I had in the past.
I interrupted whatever fantasy played behind her closed lids. “Tell me what else.”
“Hmmmm?” She smiled and looked up at me.
“What else happens in your dreams, baby?” I lay beside her again so I could touch all of her.
“You fuck me,” she said softly, still shy with her thoughts.
“Of course I do. But tell me how.”
“How?” She squirmed beside me.
“Yes. How? Is it gentle? Rough? Are you on top? From behind? Tell me about it. I want to know what you see.”
“Ohhhh. Mmmmm.” She sighed while I continued to lightly make designs with my fingertips on her bare skin. Every so often, my fingers dipped beneath the waistband of her pajama bottoms but never got quite close enough to what she wanted. She started moving her hips in time with my hand, trying to guide it closer to her clit.
“Tell me, Bay.” I grazed over the top of her pussy lips, so wet from the teasing. Her moans made my cock throb in my boxers, leaving a wet spot behind to torment me further.
“Roll onto your belly,” I whispered in her ear, loving that she did so without the argument I would’ve gotten only months ago when we first started dating. Moving behind her, I rubbed her ass cheeks roughly with the palms of my hand, in turn grinding her pelvis into the mattress.
“That feels sooooo good, Oliver,” she mumbled into the bedding.
“Good, baby. Tell me. Tell me what feels good for you. Tell me what you want from me, and it’s yours. I’m yours, Bailey.”
I leaned over her body and kissed down her shoulder, moving her hair off to one side and continuing a trail of wet kisses down the center of her back, nipping at her flesh in different spots. Sometimes harder than others, sometimes just light kisses.
“Spread your legs, baby.” She moved her thighs apart by about four inches, just enough space to fit my hand between them. “That’s good. Let me feel you.” I teased her lightly, knowing if she wanted more she would have to willingly spread her legs farther, and knowing if she did that for me, it would do something to the animal inside me. Watching a woman spread her legs for you, as a man, was one of the sexiest fucking sights of human existence. I continued taunting her clit and pussy until she was soaked and just about crazed with the need to come.
“Please, Oliver. Please. I can’t take much more.”
“I know, gorgeous. You’re so swollen. So ready.”
“God. Do it. Please. Or I can finish it if you don’t want to. Please, one way or the other. I’m going crazy.” She raised her ass in the air like a good girl and spread her legs for me, and I nearly came at the sight.
“Christ, Bailey. So fucking sexy. Do you want me to fuck you?”
“Yes! God, yes!”
I reached under her waist with my forearm and hoisted her weight up off the bed so she was up on her hands and knees, and then I drove into her, all in one swift motion. I kept her steady with my arm while I pounded into her, over and over, driven by the sight of her wet cunt, hungry and wrapped around my cock.
“Tell me now, baby. What happened in your fantasy at this part? Did you come like a good girl?”
“Yes! Oh my God, Oliver. Yes! Every time with you, I do. So good. Oh, yes! Yes!” She buried her face in the pillow and let out such a howl, I worried that I was hurting her. But when I felt her gripping my cock with her release, I mentally added the sound to the epic orgasm playlist.
I followed right behind with my own animal-like sound, releasing my load into her pussy, which was still milking me with the aftershocks of her orgasm. “Holy shit, woman. You’re killing me. One orgasm at a time. Killing me.” I leaned over her back and rested my head between her shoulders until her arms and legs gave out and we fell flat to the mattress. I pulled her close to me as we rolled to our sides, fluid leaking from both of us.
<
br /> “I like your fantasy, baby. Good stuff.”
“You’re always the star,” she said with a yawn.
“You make it easy to find inspiration.” I kissed the back of her head.
“I didn’t tell you about the last part, though. You may change your mind.” She said it so quietly, I wasn’t sure if I heard her right.
“Uh-oh. Should I ask? Maybe not. Maybe we should just go to sleep. I’m not ever going to be into sharing you or anything like that. So if that’s it, yeah, don’t tell me. Let’s just go to sleep.”
“That’s not it.” She laughed lightly, turning onto her back.
“Okay. Cool. Anything else I can handle.” I twisted our hands together and rested them on top of her stomach.
But she just lay there quietly.
“Well, are you going to tell me?”
Still, she stayed quiet.
“Do I have to tickle it out of you?” I dug my fingers into her ribs, and she burst into giggles.
“Okay! Okay! I’ll tell you. I hate being tickled. Always have.”
She just stared up into my eyes. She was really weighing the pros and cons of telling me, whatever it was.
“Just say it. I’m dying of curiosity now,” I urged her.
“In my fantasy, you and I…”
I waited for the bomb to drop. The way she was building up to it, it was going to be a doozy.
“Have a baby,” she whispered.
Boom! Hiroshima! Pearl Harbor and Nagasaki all at the same time.
Pulling her closer, I buried my nose in her hair. “You have a very active imagination. Can I ask why you haven’t had any children up to this point?”
“Well, there are a couple reasons, really. William never wanted children. He wasn’t fond of them at any stage, and it was a dream I gave up for him. And then, it turned out he was sterile, or at least that’s what he told me. When he passed, the autopsy report said that he’d had a vasectomy. So, he’d actually lied to me and had had an elective procedure to prevent us from ever having children. That really hurt me. I suppose it was for the better, seeing how often he was sleeping with other women. But still, he knew how badly I wanted a baby.”
Misadventures with a Book Boyfriend Page 16
