She didn’t have to think. “
The Sound of Music!
It’s my favorite.”
He flung an arm over his eyes. “Agh! You’re killing me. I can’t stand that movie.”
“Really? Why?”
“Don’t you know? Men hate musicals.”
“That’s not true.”
“Okay, all hetero men. But, okay. Your wish is my command.”
As they watched, Mark even sang a few of the songs with her. For a man who claimed to hate musicals, he had a decent voice. Then they sat through
Mary Poppins
. Finally he brought out the Julie Andrews version of
Cinderella
, which Hilary hadn’t seen yet.
“We can watch something else,” she suggested, feeling guilty. She would’ve been pretty annoyed if she’d had to endure hours of zombie movies. “Maybe something with lots of mindless violence and car chases?”
“Nope. We’re watching
Cinderella
. It’s your sick day,” he’d said with a small grin, hitting play.
She rested her head in the crook of his neck and watched the musical, feeling like she was Cinderella. She couldn’t remember the last time somebody had shown this much hands-on interest in her wellbeing. She was supposed to be able to stand on her own and take care of herself.
* * *
Hilary pulled her hair back into a tight bun and put on her usual conservative work clothes. Her complexion was still on the pale side, but it was nothing a little makeup couldn’t fix.
The doorbell rang, and Mark came in. “I told you to lock the door,” he called out.
“Josephine just left, and I’m about to head out as well,” she said.
“Where?” he said, poking his head into her room. “Are you going to work?”
“Yes.”
“It’s the third of July.”
“So?”
“Nobody’s going to be there.”
She rolled her eyes. “Are you sure you and Gavin are best friends?”
“We’re close enough, and I know things you’d never guess.” He scowled. “And I know you even better. You’re going in even though you aren’t feeling a hundred percent.”
“I took four days off, Mark. That was more than enough time to recuperate.”
“I don’t think so. I think you need to take the rest of the week off.”
“The rest of the week?!”
“Yeah. It’s already Wednesday. Tomorrow’s the fourth, and nobody’s working on Friday.”
“That’s ridiculous. Everyone at OWM is going to work…well…except maybe the janitors.”
“And most of the admins,” Mark added.
“But I need to go in. Gavin will be there.”
“You know Gavin’s taking four days off, right?”
She gaped at him. “He is?” Then she remembered. He had actually mentioned something about that a few months back.
“His family’s coming for the Fourth of July party at his place, and he’s gotta play host,” Mark said. “And you don’t have to do anything for Amandine either. She’s looking for a new assistant and already has a temp, She’ll probably get somebody permanent soon.”
Hilary filed that information away. She knew why Amandine had a hard time hiring people. The woman didn’t want somebody hovering over her all the time. Her best friend had filled the slot for a while, and that had been okay, but now she was gone to pursue a new career.
But Kim would be a good fit
. She was the right age and excellent at her job. She’d know how to make Amandine feel comfortable.
“So as you can plainly see,” Mark continued, “taking the rest of the week off is the most logical thing to do.”
“But—”
“No
but
s. Just a yes will be fine.” Mark brushed the back of his index finger along her cheek. The contact made her face tingle with heat. “I’m worried about you, that’s all.”
Hilary’s insides melted at the simple declaration. When people wanted her to take time off, it was generally so they could benefit from it. Bebe had often wanted her to skip school so they could hang out with boys or go smoke pot in some empty lot. Her mother and aunt and Tim had asked when they wanted her to run errands—do the grocery shopping or have the power turned back on because they’d forgotten to pay the bill and were too tired and hung over to talk to the utility company. Until Mark, nobody had insisted she played hookey just to take care of herself. “You know, I don’t know if I like this you.”
“What about it?”
“You’re bossy.”
He laughed. “Me? Bossy? Never. If I were bossy, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. And you wouldn’t have been telling me to go home because I’d get whatever you have.”
“Oh really? What would have happened instead?”
A wicked gleam entered his eyes. “For one, we would’ve C & R’d.” He put his arms around her and pulled her down on her bed. She landed with a gasp, then laughed.
“Okay. I can deal with that. And then what?”
“Then I’d’ve kissed you back to health.”
She looked up at him. “What is this? Some kind of fairytale?”
“Yup. It’s called Ailing Beauty. It’s kind of obscure, though…not too many people know about it. It took me a long time to discover it myself.”
“Care to share this incredibly obscure tale?”
“Well… Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, sexy and terribly overworked princess.”
She swallowed a giggle.
“Her bossy king made her work so much that one day she fainted despite her best efforts not to. Instead of nursing her back to health, the king sent her to her room to recover on her own.”
“Wow. What a terrible king,” she joked.
“I know. Anyway, don’t interrupt. You’re going to miss the good part.”
“All right. Go on.”
“A humble and handsome prince passing by saw this untenable situation and volunteered to watch over her. Many people protested, including the princess. Nursing was a woman’s job, they said. But the prince wasn’t going to allow some ridiculous stereotype to get in the way. He knew this princess needed him even if she didn’t know it herself.”
“Of course.” Was she getting breathless? She’d asked him to tell her to humor him, but this was sweeter than expected. Butterflies in her stomach fluttered at the close proximity of his body—his warmth and masculine scent. She put a hand over his hard, muscular chest. Their hearts seemed to beat in unison.
“So every day he went to the castle kitchen and ordered the chef to make the most delicious and nutritious food in the entire kingdom. That was the only thing worthy of passing her beautiful lips.”
Her mouth twitched in a beginning of a smile, and the shell around her heart cracked.
“Then he made sure the princess ate every bite of the specially prepared food, so she could recover her strength.”
“Ah.”
“The princess found the prince to be kind, and the prince thought the princess was the most wonderful woman he’d ever seen, but then he started to worry. What if the king needed her before she was fully recovered? Then all the prince’s efforts would be for naught.”
“What a terrible waste.” She giggled.
“Precisely.” He tapped the tip of her nose. “So a few days later, when the princess got dressed to go back to her royal duties, the prince stopped her and demanded proof of her good health.”
When he didn’t continue, she said, “So what did she do?”
“She didn’t do anything.” His eyes bore into hers. He was so close, his breath fanned against her lips. They tingled in anticipation. “It was the prince who finally said, ‘I know what to do.’”
“So what did he do?” she whispered, her gaze drifting down to his lips.
“This.” Mark’s mouth closed over hers, and she trembled. There was something so intimate about his kiss, like he could read her completely through that single connection. She pulled him closer for a better taste. It was all Mark and sugar-sweet promises.
A week ago, what they were doing would have scared her to death. She didn’t want to believe in empty gestures. But now…she wasn’t so sure they were empty. Everything Mark had done was too much work for a short-term, meaningless fling. Even if everything between them were to end tomorrow, she wanted to reach out and grab him now with no regrets.
He slid his big, hot hand along her leg. It slipped under her skirt, and she loved the slow pulsing it created inside her. New and pleasurable feelings coursed through her. No man had ever brought out this sharp and addictive chemistry.
He nuzzled her jaw line and neck, taking his time, then very carefully ran his hand along the under curve of her breasts. She felt the touch as if she wasn’t wearing anything. And she couldn’t help but imagine how much nicer it would be if she were fully naked, and he was touching her skin-to-skin.
“So damn soft,” he breathed. “Hilary.”
“Yes?”
“Will you make love with me? I’m dying to take this to the next level, but if you aren’t sure…”
This was her final chance to turn him away and protect herself. But if she pulled back now, it’d signal the end to all this. They’d go to his family party together, and that would be it. No man would want to be around a woman who pulled back over and over again without risking even a fraction of herself.
She cupped his face between her hands. “I’m very sure.”
He closed his eyes and whispered, “Thank god.”
Suddenly his relief and joy broke a tight vise around her heart. With a wicked grin, she pushed him back and straddled him. Her skirt bunched up around her hips, but she didn’t care.
“You drive me crazy, you know,” she murmured. “You aren’t supposed to be this persistent or intriguing or sexy.”
He grinned up at her. “I am irresistible, aren’t I?”
“And so modest.” She explored his body with her hands. He was all sinew and thick, strong muscles underneath the carefully fitted clothes. He held still as she unbuttoned the crisp white shirt and spread her hands over the expanse of his powerful chest. Dark hair dusted the smooth skin, and she rolled his small nipples with her fingers, then tugged on them.
He sucked in a breath. “Damn.”
“Damn good or damn bad?”
“Damn good and do it again.”
With a soft hum of satisfaction, she moved her hands down the ridges of his stomach and put her mouth where her fingers had been. He was surprisingly sensitive to her touch. She liked that. It made her feel powerful and strong, like she could do anything she wished and keep him in her power.
She stripped him and studied his gorgeous body with appreciation. Maybe the famous Pryce profile wasn’t limited to just faces. There was absolutely nothing wrong with his physique. If somebody made a sculpture of his nude body, she could buy it and put that in the office and call it art. It was that perfect, and this perfection was all hers.
His cock got even harder under her scrutiny. It was long and thick and she couldn’t help but send him a long wicked glance. If he knew what she was fantasizing about…
“Yes?” he said as though he read her mind.
Out of the three things that had flashed through her mind, she chose the one that enticed her the most. She ran her nails along his inner thighs, and his ribcage jerked as his breathing grew rougher and more uneven. She looked up at him with big doe eyes, licked her lips, and said, “Watch.”
* * *
Mark thought he’d die right there when she pulled the head of his cock into her mouth. Holding eye contact, she hollowed her cheeks and sucked on him. Damn… His muscles tightened as pleasure built. He’d had other women go down on him, but Hilary somehow made him feel like he’d shoot right then and there. The fact that this was Hilary’s mouth on him, and Hilary’s eyes on his, pushed him until he was teetering on the edge.
But that wouldn’t do. He hadn’t pursued her so he would embarrass himself like some inexperienced high school kid. Instinctively he knew getting this far was just the first step. There were still obstacles to overcome if he wanted Hilary to be with him beyond this moment.
He pulled out with a soft pop. She looked at him quizzically. Without answering the unspoken question in her gaze, he brought her up and kissed her openly.
She responded enthusiastically and sucked on his tongue. His balls tightened. Shit. His baser self wanted to go back to what they’d been doing before, but he didn’t. He wanted to hear her scream his name when she came.
He unbuttoned and tugged at her clothes until she was naked except for the matching lacy bra and panties. They were cut conservatively, making her look like an innocent angel about to be seduced. He kissed her breast, then pulled the nipple into his mouth right through the fabric. Her back arched, and she wrapped her legs around his hips. His cock settled into the folds, and he groaned at how wet she was.
“Baby, you’re so hot,” he said.
She laughed, the sound breathless. “You make me hot.”
He rocked against her, and she moaned, the deep and throaty sound going to his head like the best whiskey money could buy. He pulled her panties off. She looked so wantonly innocent with her legs spread and her modest bra covering her breasts. She was so perfect it hurt.
But now it was his turn. “Watch.”
A long slow lick along the folds of her sex yielded a honeyed taste. She was so slick and hot, he thought he could come just from going down on her. Her thighs quivered, and he loved it that he was giving her this pleasure. But he wanted to give her more. The need to prove he could make her happy in bed drove him, and he wasn’t going to stop now that he had the chance.
He pulled her clit into his mouth and used his tongue on it. A tortured moan tore from her throat, and her hand clenched the sheet. Her breath hitched as if she hadn’t done this in a while…she hadn’t had anything this hot in a long time. Maybe all her previous lovers had sucked in bed. Maybe they’d been impotent.
He sensed her control slipping, and then she shattered, back bowed and knuckles white. She pressed a fist against her mouth to muffle her scream, but he pushed it away.
“Let me hear your pleasure, Hilary,” he said. “I want to hear it.”
She sobbed, tears streaking from the corners of her eyes. He kissed them away, exultant he’d been able to take her to this high of a climax. She shuddered for a while. When it had eased into minor tremors, she whispered, “That was amazing.”
He grinned. “I’m a pretty amazing guy,” he said shamelessly, absurdly happy with the world. “You’re gorgeous when you come.”