9781631054631ChoiceAffairsSalisbury (24 page)

I got in beside
Caitlyn and shut the door. Leaning forward, I opened the smoked glass partition
between Jacob and us. “Drop me off then take Mrs. Choice home. I’ll text Renee,
tell her where I am. I’l
l have her ready an intern
with my coat and briefcase. They’ll be waiting for you at the curb.”

“Do I wait on them and
bring them back, or do you want them to find their own way?”

“If they’re
resourceful, they’ll figure it out. You have more important thin
gs to attend to.”

Jacob grinned. He
loved things like this. There was an underground tunnel between the two
buildings, and if this person was as good as they claimed when Renee hired
them, they’d be able to find their own way back.

I closed the partition
a
nd leaned over to devour my wife’s lavish lips as I
silently cursed the inability to just blow off the afternoon’s business.

Chapter
Fourteen

As soon as I entered
the penthouse, I realized I was starving. I tossed my purse and coat over a
chair and
headed to the kitchen. Good thing Jacob had
dropped Apolo off first. If he hadn’t, it may have turned into something. What
I needed now was a sandwich. Then, off to work.

I was excited at this
latest turn of events. Possibly this cousin of Apolo’s, Tina, w
as the ticket we needed to help us start the foundation.
A complete outsider, with no ties to
Washington or the other set of politics that was being played.

Taking my roast beef
and Swiss cheese, along with a bottle of water, into my office, I turned my co
mputer back on. Hopefully, the second half of the day would
be better than the first. A cold chill shot through me as I recalled what had
transpired earlier in Apolo’s office.

As I waited for the
laptop to do its thing, I scrolled through my phone for mess
ages.
Mother.
She just wasn’t going to take the hint.
Her last text was spiteful. She mentioned Delpheine being at Apolo’s office and
that a mother is never wrong.

“Well, yeah, you are,
Mother. You don’t know what you’re talking about, and I sure don’t kno
w what that bitch has been feeding you.” I deleted all her
messages without reading them. She certainly wasn’t going to ruin the rest of
my day.

I keyed in Apolo’s
cousin’s name and was pleasantly surprised at what I found. Tina had a web
site. She was qui
te an attractive woman, a couple of
years older than Apolo.

I read through her bio
then her past accomplishments. She had indeed helped two major stars start
their foundations. It gave me hope. Reading farther, I noted she was also a
screenplay writer, tho
ugh she’d never had anything
made into a major production. Special event planning seemed to be her thing.
Made me wonder why Apolo had never mentioned her or invited her to our wedding.
Perhaps he hadn’t wanted to include her in his family drama.

Spending
the afternoon engrossed in catching up on correspondence
and emails, I looked at the clock on the computer and noted it was after four.
I’d also ignored my phone, so I picked that up and scrolled through. I knew
there’d be nothing from Apolo. I had set a s
pecial
ringtone, so I’d know when it was from him.

There was a voicemail
and text from Renee. I decided to ignore them. I didn’t want to relive what had
transpired at Apolo’s office. Not with her or anyone else.

Realizing I hadn’t
taken a break in hours, I
pushed myself away from the
desk. I headed into the kitchen where I deposited my plate and cup from earlier
into the dishwasher. Spying a half-full bottle of red wine on the counter, I
grabbed a glass and poured the remains into it. I took a long swallow,
sighed, and went in search of a comfortable place to sit.

I sat down on one of
the overstuffed leather sofas and finished my glass of wine. The next thing I
remembered was the sound of Apolo’s ringtone.

Sitting up, I grabbed
my phone. “Sorry. I fell aslee
p.”

“Good for you. I’m
leaving now.”

“Okay. See you in a
few.”

“Oh,
and Caitlyn?”

“Yes?”

He hesitated for a
moment.
“Nothing.
See you in a few.”

“Apolo?”

“Nothing,
angel.
I love you.”

“I love you, too,” I
replied, but he had already hung up. He sounded str
ung
tight.
Probably the stress of the
day.

I walked into the
darkened, cool room where Apolo kept a small wine collection. It was nothing in
comparison to what he had in Atlanta, but he’d shipped up a good variety to
help get us started. I looked through t
he shelves
until I came to a nice Cabernet we both enjoyed. Pulling two bottles out, I
walked to the kitchen and uncorked one. I let it stand there while I looked for
fresh glasses.

Hearing the sound of
Apolo’s voice, I left everything and headed into the
living
room to greet him. “That was quick. I just opened a bottle of Cabernet. Like a
glass?” I asked, as I snaked my arms around his waist.

He reciprocated,
drawing me tight against him for a couple of seconds. He kissed the top of my
head. “Actually, I t
hink I’d like something
stronger.”

I pulled back,
grinning at him.
“Rough day?”

“Let’s just say this
has been a strange one and leave it at that.”

We walked farther into
the living room, his arm around my shoulder.

“Go pour yourself what
you want. I’m
going to get a glass of wine. Then, we
can sit, and hopefully, you can unwind.”

“Yes,” he replied, his
voice changing. “I actually have a few ideas to accomplish that a little
later.”

I disappeared back
into the kitchen, the hairs on my arms standing on en
d.
The lilt in his voice just now.
I knew exactly what he had in store for
us. I poured one glass of wine and drank it down before pouring another. He was
right about one thing—this had been a strange day. But I had the feeling it was
going to get a little
kinky later on.

He was standing at the
bank of windows looking out over the Washington
skyline,
drink in one hand, the other thrust down in a pocket. I
could see his reflection. He looked tired and lost in thought.

“What’s on your mind,
babe? You look a m
illion miles away.”

He turned to face me
just as I came up next to his muscular body. I caught a whiff of his cologne.
Perfect for him.

“Just playing over the
events of today, that’s all.”

“Well, put your brain
in neutral and come sit with me.” I took his
hand,
which had now come out of his trouser pocket, and led him toward one of the
sofas.

Sitting down on the
overstuffed leather couch, he took a long drink and placed the glass on a table
next to him.
“Quite a day, huh?”

“I hadn’t noticed,” I
teased. “I did come home and look up your cousin, Tina, on line.
Very impressive woman.”

“Yes, she is. I sent
her a text in response to hers. Told her we were interested in talking with her
and to give me a call at her convenience. I
figure
it’s the weekend, so she may be busy.”

“Good thinking. You’re
right. She’s just what we need to get this off the ground. So, what would you
like to do this evening?”

“I thought I’d finish
my drink. Take a shower.”

“Dinner?”

“Perhaps
after a while.
I
need to unwind a bit, first.”

* * * *

I watched him intently
as he polished off his second glass of whiskey. We’d been sitting, chatting,
anything to clear his mind and mine of the days’ events.

Setting his empty
crystal glass on the table, he unfolded
his tall,
muscular frame. He extended a hand. “Come, my pet.” He led me to the luxurious
bathroom just off our bedroom. I caught my breath in anticipation of what might
lie ahead.

Apolo cracked the
shower faucet full blast. Six sinful showerheads waited in
the oversize stall. The natural stones blended well with
the glass accents.
All in earthy,
natural-colored tiles.

The tone of his voice
changed again. A muscle ticked in his jaw.
“Strip.
Now,” he growled.

I swallowed hard,
pushing the T-shirt over my head
and my pants to the
floor. I gazed at him, his eyes fierce, predatory,
his
face growing hard and intense.

Back-walking me over
to a wall, he shoved my thong down my legs with a growl. He covered my body
with his. Then, he stripped his own clothes off befo
re
leading me to the shower and closing the glass doors behind us.

He dragged me against
his body as hot water pelted over us. Reaching for the soap, he rubbed it
between his large palms. “What is it you want?” He wasn’t speaking to me as a
husband now, b
ut as a Master. It made me melt. He
cupped my breasts and rolled the nipples until they were hard.

Every brush of his
skin sent me gasping and clinging to him, but I didn’t speak. “Good.
Not another word unless I tell you
otherwise.”
He spun me until I was directly under the warm water. The
soap ran down my body. He bent, sucking and nipping at my aching nipples. He
never said a word.

Nudging my legs apart,
he covered my mound possessively with his palm, fingers sliding inside me. “Do
you know what it does to me when you get so wet?”

I was trying to catch
my breath when he lifted me against him, forcing my legs around his waist. He
flattened me against the wall. I threw my arms around his neck as his cock
bobbed between us. He position
ed himself and impaled
me in one hard thrust.

“Take me, all of me,”
he panted against my ear before he covered my mouth with his.

He gripped my hips and
pushed me down on his cock as he arched. I gasped against his lips, and he used
the opportunity to thru
st his tongue possessively
into my mouth.

He overtook my every
sense, wrapping himself all around me with his strength, his seduction. He
thrust so deeply into me, I screamed. “That’s it, my pet. Take every inch of
me,” he rasped into my ear as he stroked
into me
again.

“Apolo.”
I frantically grabbed his hair.
“Harder.”

He nipped at the lobe
of my ear. “You’re so beautiful when you flush.”

He forged deeper into
my slick, swelling pussy, scraping against the sensitized flesh. “That’s it,
baby.” He slowed his
strokes, lingering over the one
spot he knew drove me wild.

“Please, Apolo!” He
grabbed tighter, ground into me against that spot that ached. Overwhelmed by
the sensation overtaking my body and Apolo’s voice urging me on, I reveled when
he followed me int
o the abyss, coming inside me in a
hot liquid release.

He set me on my feet
then braced one hand on the wall above my shoulders for support. He nuzzled my
neck as I panted. “I can’t stop fucking you. You’re making me hard again.”

“Then, fuck me again.”

Tha
t’s all the encouragement he needed as he began pumping and
thrusting wildly in me. Finally in the throw of his release again, he kissed me
on the tip of the nose. Then, he stepped out onto the cool tile and handed me a
towel, reaching back to cut off the
shower.

I’d be lying if I said
I wasn’t disappointed that he didn’t take things further. He was spent, which
was brought on by his newly chosen career. I’d come to crave that side of our
relationship. The one in which I completely and totally allowed him a
ll control.
The
one where I submitted to him unconditionally.

“Hungry?” I asked as I
reached for a bra and thong from the built-in drawer in the closet.

He eyed me intently.
“Yes, and no clothes, my pet. I want you completely naked the rest of the
night. I
want to be able to reach out and touch your
soft skin whenever I please. Or watch you touch yourself when I command.”

Shaking my head, I
turned and proceeded toward the kitchen area. Not that I minded, but cooking
and naked were not two words I would put
together.
“You’re a strange man sometimes, Apolo Choice, but it’s one of the reasons I
love you.”