Come Together (30 page)

“You can’t come,” I said. “And now
I’m
pissed.”

He was almost vibrating and I shrank back, finding he’d somehow backed me into a corner of the room.

“I told you,” he said, each word sharp as it sliced from his mouth, “you’re not to be alone with him.” He took another step forward, and his voice rose. “He touches you, and that’s on me! What are you going to do with Gretchen there if he tries to hurt you? Huh?”

I just stared at him in shock.

His fist hit the wall behind me. “Answer me!”

My eyes were riveted to him, and I shuddered at the intensity of his anger. I tried to comprehend what was happening, tried to formulate an answer. Before I could, he turned and stormed out, slamming the door thunderously behind him. I watched after him for a few moments as I collected myself.

I didn’t want to fight with him. I hated to see him that way, but wasn’t it important to set boundaries? What right did he have to order me around? Bill didn’t deserve to have his broken nose rubbed in my new relationship.

I sighed and climbed back onto the bed, wondering where he’d gone. I hoped fervently that he hadn’t left the apartment. His apartment. His bed.
I
had nowhere to go when I was upset. He was so incredibly angry, I wondered if he would he even want me sleeping beside him.

I grabbed a pillow and silently opened the door. Light spilled from under the closed door of his office, and I was filled with relief that he hadn’t left. I forwent the guest room in favor of curling up on the couch.

I sank into the pillow promising myself that we’d work it out in the morning. That once he’d cooled off, he would see things from my perspective.

~

I heaved a sigh and opened my bleary eyes. Even through my sleepiness, David’s handsome face took my breath away. Were his eyes so intense that they could penetrate even my sleep?

“Why are you out here?” he whispered as he stared down at me.

“You’re mad at me,” I said in a small voice, coiling tighter around my pillow.

He crouched down and cleared a piece of hair from my face. “I’ll never be so upset that I don’t want you sleeping next to me.” He bundled me in his arms and lifted me to his chest. I closed my eyes and burrowed my nose into his t-shirt, inhaling fresh laundry and David while he carried me. I was almost asleep again when he set me in the middle of the bed and wrapped himself around me.

“I’m still mad,” I murmured.

“Me too.”

CHAPTER 20

I AWOKE STILL IN MY ROBE, unable to remember how I’d gotten from the couch to the bed. The faucet started in the bathroom, and I quickly ran through David’s and my conversation from the night before. My stance hadn’t changed, but since my plans for the night had been thwarted, I decided that I’d be up for angry sex if he was.

I wasn’t looking forward to our impending conversation however, so I avoided the bathroom altogether and gathered my things for the day. I grabbed my laptop from his office and noticed a mess of papers on his drafting table that hadn’t been there the night before. The blueprint on top was labeled
Home.
I leaned closer, my eyes darting over the drawing of the Oak Park house, trying to envision what he had created. My heart filled with love as I took in all the care and detail he’d put into the plans. I ran my fingers over the copious and hasty notes scribbled in his handwriting.

“That’s just a rough sketch,” he said from behind me. “Obviously I want to get your input before we get to the next phase.”

I turned around. He was already dressed for work in a crisp, royal blue dress shirt and black slacks. “You’re amazing,” I said. “And whatever you do will be perfect.”

“Perfect?” he asked with an arched black eyebrow.

“Perfect,” I repeated because I meant it. “Thank you.”

He came into the room and stepped around me, pulling the chair out from under the desk. He sat down and rolled closer before gesturing that I should sit in his lap.

I obeyed cautiously while holding my robe closed, unsure of his mood. His fingers grazed against my neck as he swept my hair away, and his chin hovered over my shoulder. “See this here?” he asked into my ear, pointing to the bedroom.

I nodded.

“I’m picturing a bathroom like the one in this apartment but even bigger. We can put in a gigantic shower, and then over here, a clawfoot tub.”

“I like those,” I said.

“I thought you might. That would mean losing a little space in the bedroom, especially if you want a walk-in closet.”

“I do.”

“I thought you might.”

I smiled to myself as he laid out the rest of the bedroom. Sliding his fingers down the hallway, he explained that he’d need one room for his office, that way he could work from home more often.

Across the way was a room that had noticeably fewer notes. He lingered there a moment before speaking. “This is a free room, unless you have any ideas. I suppose maybe a guest room would be a good idea. At first anyway.”

I didn’t tense despite my body’s impulse to. He would notice, and I couldn’t have that. Not after we’d gotten this far and hadn’t even had a chance to really enjoy each other yet. Because his implication was clear. I didn’t know how a discussion about children would go, but, I thought fleetingly, it was the only thing left that had the power to destroy us.

“It’s not a huge house,” he continued, “so as time goes by, we may want to . . . add. I’ve taken this into consideration, and we’ll have the ability when it comes to that. Unless you want to do it now.”

My heart pulled, and I shook my head quickly.
Add? Exactly how much does he want to ‘add’?

He proceeded through the remainder of the house, describing his ideas and what they would entail. I was confronted with the immensity of the project, from replacing the plumbing system to reroofing, retiling, repainting . . . I sighed at the fact that he was doing this, essentially, for me.

“What’s wrong?” he asked gently, raking his fingers through my hair to tuck it behind my ear.

“It’s absolutely perfect. But it’s a lot of work, David. And money.”

He was quiet as he continued to pet me. I closed my eyes, succumbing to the power of his hands on me. “I always knew I wanted to be an architect,” he said. “I was lucky, I guess. I never even considered anything else . . . I don’t know why. It felt like my calling. It has given me a lot – purpose, gratification, wealth. It’s hard work, but it’s also my hobby. And you are my passion. I want to do this for you. I need to.”

“I love you,” I whispered, leaning back against him with my eyes still closed. His now smooth cheek passed against mine. His hands came around the front of my slinky robe, passing over my breasts and hugging me close. He pressed his lips into my cheek, remaining there as my body responded to his touch. Desire, already simmering at the surface, blossomed deep inside of me.

“I have to leave,” he said without letting go.

I groaned and wrapped my arms over his.

“Do you want to take one of the cars to work?” he asked.

“You’d let me?”

“Yes, but you hurt it, there’ll be consequences.”

Though I didn’t think I’d mind the consequences, I only laughed and said, “I’ll take the train.”

“I have a really full day, but we still need to talk about getting your stuff tonight.”

“Okay,” I sighed softly.

“Can you come to my office on your lunch break? I’ll have something delivered.”

“Yes.”

“All right, up you go,” he said, lifting me off his lap and setting me on my feet.

“Are we going to fight?” I asked.

“I hope not, baby. I don’t like when we do.”

“Me neither.” I placed my hands on his chest and rose up for a kiss. “Have a good morning.”

“I already am,” he said. “See you in a few hours.”

~

As the elevator at Pierson/Greer ascended, I tapped my foot and thought about what was to come. I was unsettled over the previous night’s fight and wasn’t looking forward to rehashing it. In the office, I met a new receptionist. She was pretty and on the younger side, but I quickly checked my tinge of jealousy when I noticed how nervous she was. It was obvious that I intimidated her, likely because David himself was so intimidating.

I gave her my coat, and she showed me into David’s empty office. Back in his bubble, I relaxed. I wandered around the room, picking up a photo of him with his family. I was surprised at the surge of affection I felt just looking at them, even though I’d only met them twice. I’d never had those warm feelings toward Bill’s stoic family – nothing remotely close, actually.

I heard David send the receptionist out for lunch before striding into the office and shutting the door behind him. Earlier I’d noticed how his royal blue shirt set off his dark features, but now I had the urge to jump into his arms and beg him to take me. My anger and arousal were commingling, becoming one and the same.

My unsettled feeling returned however when I noticed he seemed edgy; a dark, brooding cloud entering my hemisphere. “I don’t have much time so I just grabbed Mexican from downstairs,” he said, setting a full plastic bag on his desk.

“I’m not hungry.”

The look on his face indicated the scolding to come, but I was saved by the ringing of his desk phone. He whipped off his jacket and threw it over the couch. “One minute.” I watched him round the desk and fall into his chair, leaning back as he answered the phone. “Dylan. Yes.” His eyebrows knit. “Yes.”

One thing I’d not yet gotten was my businessman David. I’d been thrumming all morning, and quite often over the past few months, I’d yearned to see what was underneath David’s perfectly-tailored suits. I strolled over to his chair and before he even looked up, dropped to my knees between his legs. The leather chair groaned as he sat forward suddenly.

“Yes, that’s – that’s correct,” he said into the phone. I looked at him from beneath my lashes. My hands skated up his muscular thighs until one landed on his crotch. He shifted when I felt the hardening length of him through his pants.

His hand dove into my hair and pulled my head back so I was forced to look at him. I bit down on my lip, and he smirked at me.

“That will be presented at the afternoon meeting,” he continued, staring at me as I blindly undid his fly. “I have to call you back.” The phone was down before he’d even finished the sentence. He grasped my waist with two large hands and hoisted me up onto his desk.

“Wait,” I protested.

“Lie back.”

“But I want – ”

“Lie back,” he growled. I complied.

He pulled my hips so I was hanging off the edge and pushed my skirt up impatiently. My panties ripped loudly a second before his fingers were in me.

My eyes fluttered closed. “Oh, God,” I moaned.

“Mouth shut, eyes open,” he whispered, glancing at the door. “Christ, you’re wet. You been like this all day?” he asked, his fingers slowing as they leisurely explored me.

I nodded emphatically, pleading with my eyes for him to fuck me, but he shook his head slowly.

“Can you keep quiet?” he asked, and I nodded again.

He crouched down, and I rested my legs on his shoulders as his tongue landed directly on my clit. He was so domineering, telling me what to do, commanding me in his businessman David way that I easily melted into the sensations. My orgasm was already within reach because it’d been nearby all morning. My thighs shook as he lapped at me, hard and then soft until my eyes were crossed with need for release. I strained to keep quiet, suppressing my groans behind airtight lips. My climax churned through me, wave after wave as his tongue prolonged it.

When it ended, I exhaled audibly and dropped my feet, slumping on his desk. I was spent but riveted by the lusty look on his face. He looked powerful and out of control as he dropped his pants and took my thighs in each of his hands. He squeezed them and licked his lips. “Your pussy’s far too sweet not to have it every day.”

I whimpered as he positioned himself against me and pulled my hips into his first thrust. Even through his shirt, I saw his arms flex as he urged me deeper onto him. Strong fingers spread my legs, so each time he pulled out and slid back in, I had no choice but to feel all of him. I reached behind me to grip the lip of the desk, pushing back against him, clenching around his cock, watching his jaw tighten and release as his drives came faster.

He pinned my thighs to the desk and dropped forward to lock me in a furious kiss. I could taste his desire, and that alone catapulted me into a raw and throbbing orgasm that had me crying his name into his mouth.

He detached from me and ripped open my blouse. His mouth dropped to my chest, sucking and nipping the skin between my breasts so I yelped. His fingers dug into my hips as he came with a gush of hot fluid, groaning against my collarbone as he emptied himself in me, gliding in and out until he was completely finished.

“Jesus,” he said into the curve of my neck. He released my hips and dropped back into his leather chair. “You’ll be the death of me if we keep this up.” He paused a moment, looking thoughtful. “Fucking you’d be the sweetest way to go, though.”