Chapter 21
-DAMIAN
Hey, how are you doing?’ I typed on my phone, only to delete the message again. Cursing inwardly, I chewed the insides of my checks and composed another message.
‘T’ll be in Seattle on Saturday. Wanna come as my date? If you’re not busy? I groaned, deleting what I typed, and slapped my phone screen down on top of my thigh.
A chuckle rumbled from the driver’s seat. Danny was behind the wheel, driving me back to my accommodation in LA. I pinned him with a narrowed glare through the rearview mirror. The man’s chuckle turned to full-blown laughter.
“The f uck are you laughing at?” I grumbled, parking an elbow on the windowpane.
We’re driving through the city after meeting Silverio and Claudia from Scarlette Interiors. The meeting dragged on longer than planned because Silverio tends to mix pleasure with business. After Claudia pitched her interior design plans, Silverio invited us for a drink I made a lame excuse to meet my girlfriend just to get out of their hair. Silverio was probably balls- deep buried now in Claudia’s pu ssy.
Claudia’s resemblance to Sonja left an unsettling feeling in my gut. Five foot six, brunette, blue eyes. Claudia was a little curvier than Sonja. I almost tried to pluck her our of Silverio’s claws.
I sighed, feeling bad for Sonja all over again. But who was I to judge them? My hands were far from being clean.
“Is this Millie chick occupying your mind?” He asked, pulling my gaze from watching the city lights’ stripe of a kaleidoscope as we drove by
I neither denied nor confirmed his question and asked instead. “How did you know about Millicent?”
It had been five days since I last heard from Millicent, and she’d been on my mind like a lessee taking permanent residence there, rent-free. I don’t know what I expected from her, but definitely not this radio silence. We had a good time at Legally Luke’s. I’m sure we did. We were inseparable that night. We were all over each other, and now I’m wondering if I did. something to trigger this cold treatment from her.
I don’t even know how to start a conversation because she was, in fact, ab iding by our agreement. PDA was allowed, but we didn’t exactly lay out our rules when we had no audience or were states away from each other. She did insist that there would be no third party involved. I get why she insisted on the clause. So I said yes, even if it meant I would be celibate for a
year.
“Finance chicks had been bugging me about your rumored ‘girlfriend,” he insisted on the last word, a spark of teasing tone. “So, is it true?”
I nodded. In the public eye, Millicent is my girlfriend. There’s no use denying that to Danny or any of our employees,
anyway.
“Da mn,” Danny grinned. “So someone finally tamed the wild heart of Damian Black, huh? Agnes will be pis s ed.”
Agnes was the Finance Manager who’d been blatant in her mission to be my wife. Apart from Sonja, having Millicent as my girlfriend will push away the unwanted attention I’m getting from our employees as well. I hope it does.
“She can be pi ssed all she wants, Danny,” I groaned, pulling out my phone, debating whether to just ask her to come with me to Seattle. We agreed we’d be there for each other when we needed a date for an event. That’s my reason for seeing her again.
“Ah… trouble in paradise already?” Danny asked, taking the turn towards one of Black Hotels franchises. The distant crashing waves of the Pacific Ocean eased the tension in my spine a bit.
I tucked my phone back into my pocket, annoyed. Danny would never understand my dilemma. He’s been a one-womant kind of guy, been with his girlfriend since they were in college.
|||
09:25 Sat, Feb 10
pter 21
Stopping the SUV at the red light, he reached for his messenger bag in the passenger side, passing
me.
a manila envelope to
“I’ve been talking since we left the club,” he murmured, no hint of ire in his tone. In fact, he sounded amused. “I know you heard no shi t about my report on Belmont. Everything is in there.” The car wheeled once more as the green light lit up on the streetlight.
I sighed, grateful that Danny was an efficient assistant. My mind has been a muddle of indecision since Monday. I don’t even know how I’m functioning in this state. “Heard anything from Mon?”
He nodded a yes. “He will send the CCTV footage tomorrow.”
“Alright, send it to my email as soon as you get it.” I shoved the envelope in my bag as Danny pulled in front of the hotel.
Before I could slide out, Danny said, “Do something to get her attention,” as though he understood my problem. “That works, he added, chuckling.
Thanks Danny,” I groaned, closing the door. But as I made my way through the lobby, I considered his advice, conjuring an excellent way to get Millicent’s attention without looking like a hormonal teenager eager to see my girlfriend.
By the time I poured the honey mixture and sliced lemons into the seared salmon in the skillet, I was anxious as f uck. I almost burn the salmon from peeking at my phone every f ucking minute. I turned the stove off and transferred the salmon onto a plate. My stomach was a mess of knots, and the idea of eating made me nauseous.
My phone chimed. I grabbed it with the speed of lightning striking the ground, a s hit-eating grin stretched my lips. It was a message from Millicent.
F uck! 1 raked my fingers through my hair. This isn’t happening to me. It felt like I was sixteen all over again, a boy without control over his hormones.
I let five minutes pass, sipping a beer before opening Millicent’s message.
Millicent: Hey, can I call?
That’s it? Why didn’t I think of sending a message like that earlier?
I gnawed my lip and pressed the video call button. The low rumble of the ringer filled the silence in my suite. Millicent answered on the third ring, and f uck me. The sight of her made my di ck surge forward.
I forgot the time difference between her location and mine. She’s already in bed in nothing but a silk spaghetti-strapped to She held the sheets up
one hand over his breasts. What I would give for her to tug those sheets down. Her hair was a
mess of beautiful blond curls cascading past her shoulder. Her face was make-up-free.
“Hey,” she smiled, a pink blush tainting her cheeks.
“Hi,” I groaned, pressing my tongue on the inside of my cheeks. Are you about to sleep?”
She bit her lip, shaking her head no. The video went shaky for a beat, and then she was leaning on the headboard, a pillow pressed in her front as a cover-up. “I was reading, then my phone wouldn’t stop buzzing on my side table.” Her big brown eyes narrowed to slits. “Had anything to do with that?”
I pulled my lower lip between my teeth. This this kind of conversation is why I can’t stop thinking about Millicent. No woman has ever talked to me so casually. They’re usually flirting, trying so hard to get my attention or to have their mouths around my coc k
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I heaved, grabbed my plate of salmon, and brought it to the breakfast bar.
“Yeah? Were you drunk as well when you changed your profile picture?”
I threw my head back laughing and went back to the kitchen, fetching my bottle of beer.
Before taking a shower, I scrolled through my phone and found a decent photo of Millicent and me on that reunion night.
She wasn’t the only one who got pictures of us that night. I did, too, because she insisted we needed to document our one- night relationship. I haven’t deleted any of those pictures and stared at them in the last couple of days.
I chose the picture of us with my arms around her waist as we grinned at the camera. She held my phone and took a snapshot with my lips pressed to the top of her head.
“Maybe,” I murmured, setting my phone on the holder and slicing my salmon. “Do you want me to take it down?”
Please don’t say yes. I liked that picture, and it took me an hour of debating about making that move.
“No,” she said quietly, her blush deepening. “I guess it’s only fitting, since we’re faking things. It just surprised me.”
“Haven’t you noticed? I’m full of surprises, baby,” I winked at her, taking a forkful of my salmon.
She giggled. That you are, babe. What’s your dinner?”
“Honey garlic glazed salmon.”
She closed her eyes and moaned as though she were tasting what I was eating. My d ick jumped against the fabric of my shorts. Those moans had invaded my dreams since the night we shared in my bed. Like a f ucking creep, I had jerked off, picturing Millicent moaning and writhing beneath me since Saturday night.
g me up.
“A man who can cook turns me on, babe,” she teased and f uck me. Her sultry tone was working
“Yeah?” I leaned back in my seat and sipped my beer, wanting to have her for dinner instead. So we’re doing this, flirting even if we don’t have an audience. I’m in. “How turned on are we talking about?”
“Hm, she thought for a moment, lust dilating her eyes. “Like toe-curling, spine-arching turned on.”
“Da mn, Millicent, I groaned, shifting in my seat.
She giggled, sliding down from the headboard until she was lying on her bed. Turning to the side, she is still hugging that dam n pillow. I would give anything right now to be in her room pluck that pillow, and see her nipples strain against her silk top. Was she even wearing shorts or just her panties?
G odda mmit! My semi-turned into a full-blown h ard-on in the snap of a finger.
“So, do you actually have something to ask from me?” she asked, biting her lip. My brows creased. “You won’t try to grab my attention like that for no reason.”
For a moment, I forgot how assertive Millicent can be. “I need a date on Saturday.”
“Where?”
“Seattle. Dad was supposed to attend that fundraiser, but he asked if I could fill in. He’d want to take Nancy for a weekend getaway”
“That’s sweet. She gnawed her lip. “I would love to go. Is there a dress code?”
“I’ll handle that,” I said. “I’ll book us a hotel. Meet me there before lunchtime?”
“Okay”
“Yeah?”
She hummed, yawning. “My boyfriend needs me, so I’ll be there
I chuckled, my heart drumming at the anticipation of seeing her again.
III
