Pulse 3 (Pulse Series) (7 page)

“
What… What exactly will I be doing?” I asked.

“
You’ll be my personal assistant,” Rafael said. “Where I will go, you will go. What I do, you will be there to witness it.”

It all sounded too good to be true. Not only did I get a chance to finally leave the drud
gery of sitting in front of a computer all day. Now I was being given the opportunity to work right alongside Rafael. How often does a woman get the chance to work with her boyfriend?

But I was the reason all of this happened. I couldn
’t accept their offer so quickly. I didn’t say another word. I was speechless.

“
Think about it,” Martin said to me. “There’s no need for you to rush into an answer. This is an important decision. I can’t stress that enough. I want you to give it some real thought and consideration.”

“
You don’t have to do this,” Rafael said to me. “Whatever you want to do is up to you. But I
am
considering everybody. And I believe that this is for the best.”

I looked at him and nodded. I sighed a deep breath,
still unable to comprehend everything they were proposing.

“
I’m sorry to disturb you on your lunch hour,” Martin said. “Unless you have any other questions, you’re free to leave.”

“
Thank you, sir.”

I stood up from the chair and left the office. A few seco
nds later, I heard the door open and close behind me. I turned around and saw Rafael there.

“
Hey, are you all right?” he asked.

“
I’m fine,” I said. “It’s just… a lot to think about, that’s all.”

“
I understand. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you ahead of time what I planned on telling the board but I couldn’t do it if you gave me even a hint of objection.”

“
I’m not opposed to it. I’m just not sure I’m ready for it. Is this really a good idea? For us to be working together?”

“
I think so.”

“
I… I need some time to think about it.”

“
Of course. This is your decision, Alice.”

He leaned forward and kissed me softly upon the cheek. He stared at me and I couldn
’t help but sigh. The two of us smiled at one another. Just from the way he looked at me was enough to turn my insides into gelatin. I knew that I couldn’t get swept away in my feelings and blindly accept their proposal. Letting my emotions make this decision would have consequences for everyone.

“
I want to see you tonight,” he said.

“
Of course.”

He picked one of my han
ds up in his and kissed the sides of my fingers. Then he squeezed it tightly before releasing it.

“
I still have some other business to talk to him about,” he said.

“
I know.”

He smiled at me then bowed his head before turning around and heading back into Martin
’s office. As I headed out of the building for my lunch break, I was already considering the promotion they were offering. More than anything, I was thinking about what could possibly go wrong. All I could think about was how much I cared about Rafael and how far I was willing to go for him. I wanted to make the right decision for the both of us. As I searched my head for any possible objections, I couldn’t find any. Regardless of what I could come up with, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to come to a decision until I spoke to Rafael tonight in a more intimate setting.

Chapter 8

I didn’t drink the during the workweek. A few glasses of wine with dinner were enough to give me trouble in the morning. It was only during the weekend when I spent my time with Rafael was I able to drink without worrying about the consequences.

Tonight was an exception. With an important decision weighing upon me, I enjoyed some alcohol to try
and put my mind at ease. The promotion Rafael was offering wasn’t as simple as it seemed. I knew that I was capable of doing a good job. But the job they wanted me to do wasn’t in my resume nor had I studied for it in college. More than anything, they just wanted me to the model partner who stood by his side.

I knelt upon the bed with a pillow underneath my stomach. I buried my arms into another pillow, my head turned to the side as I tried my best to keep my eyes open.

“How does that feel?”

“
It… feels good.”

I let out a slow and controlled sigh as the sensations shot through my body. I was bent over on the bed in nothing but a bra. I lifted my ass into the air as if presenting it to him. Rafael ran his hand along one of my cheeks. He pressed his mouth again
st me, his lips smacking across the soft and supple flesh.

“
Kissing my ass won’t make it any better,” I said to him.

“
Oh, I think it will.”

The cold lubricant he squeezed between my ass cheeks was cold. His finger squeaked as he slid it down between and to
ward the entrance he’d never used before.

“
I’ll go slow,” he said.

“
I don’t think you have a choice,” I groaned.

I shuddered as his index finger pressed against my anus. It forced a whimper from my lungs. Rafael stopped immediately.

“Slow,” I sighed.

“
Slow…”

He pushed his finger back against me. With his other hand gripping my ass firmly, he slowly pushed his finger into me. I grunted and bit down on my lips. I wasn
’t used to it but I was doing everything I could to bear it. I didn’t have control of the muscles.

The lubricant wasn
’t enough for him to squeeze it into me. He pushed more forcefully and I could feel the sensations surging through my body. I shut my eyes tight as they began to water. I was doing everything I could to try and loosen up but there was no use.

“
That’s it,” he whispered. “That’s my whole finger.”

I was almost surprised to hear him say it. He held it inside of me and I did my best not to focus on how stretched out it felt.

“Just breathe, Alice… Nice and slow.”

I followed his instructions to the best of my ability. I took slow and deep breaths while I tried to relax every muscle in my body. It was an odd sensation. It wasn
’t as objectionable as I imagined it would be. But there was still a long way to go before I would actually prefer it to other means of ecstasy.

His finger slid out of me and I breathed a sigh of relief. As I tried to catch my breath, Rafael leaned down and kissed the soft flesh of my ass once again.

“Are you all right?” he asked me.

“
I’m okay,” I sighed. “I’m okay.”

“
Did you like it?”

I didn
’t say anything. Instead, I rolled over onto my back and looked up at him. My eyes were still watery and the feeling was still lingering between my legs.

“
You’re really serious about this, aren’t you?” I asked him.

“
Why wouldn’t I be? I want to experience everything with you, Alice. I think it’s time we experimented just a little bit, don’t you think?”

“
I don’t know. I think you’re jumping the gun. Six months is a little early to be asking for anal.”

“
I don’t think so,” he said as he laughed. “If anything, you should have given it up a
long
time ago. I was half-expecting you to give it up that first night in the stairwell.”

“
What?” I exclaimed. “What kind of girl did you think I was?”

I sat-up and stared at him
. A smirk appeared on his face. I rolled my eyes at him as he burst into laughter. I picked one of the pillows up and playfully smacked him on the arm with it.

“
I’m just kidding,” he said as he continued to laugh. “It’s just something different, that’s all. If you’re not enjoying it, then I won’t enjoy it.”

“
Somehow I doubt that.”

“
Fine. I’ll just fuck you how I usually do.”

“
Good.”

He leapt forward and pinned me down on the mattress. He pressed my arms down in his tight grip as he laid on top of me. My yel
p was cut off as he pushed his face toward mine. Our mouths enveloped one another’s as we engaged in a passionate kiss. After a few seconds, Rafael pulled away from me. I stared into his brown eyes and the playful look he had just seconds before was gone. But it didn’t matter how he was feeling at any moment. I still felt the same way about him. He was still the same man I cared about.

He smiled at me as he slowly released me from his grip. I sat up on the bed next to him and kissed him on his cheek.

“How is everything?” I said as I reached my hands up and rubbed his back. “It must be nice to be back to work.”

“
It is,” he sighed. “I didn’t realize how long I was gone. I almost forgot what it was like. But when I stepped back into my office, I realized how much time I was wasting here. All of these new things I was doing. These new hobbies and endeavors. It was all just an attempt to cure my boredom. But there’s nothing quite like real work.”

“
I’m glad that you decided to come back.”

“
Oh yeah?” he said as he turned and looked at me. “Why do you say that?”

“
I didn’t want to say anything at first…”

“
What is it?”

“
When we were dating, just dating… I could see it in you. The way you sat in your chair at breakfast and read the paper. The way you bit your tongue when you would talk about the company. The look in your eyes as you stared into the city to enjoy the view. It just seemed like you were missing something. Even now you seem different.”

“
How am I different?”

“
You look happier, that’s all.”

Rafael sighed a deep
breath through his nose. I could feel his muscles loosen up underneath my grip as I continued to caress his back.

“
I don’t know if happy is the right word,” he said. “But I did miss it. Things just feel right.”

“
They
are
right. You’re the boss of this company. It’s where you belong. Don’t forget that.”

I leaned in close and kissed him upon the cheek. I trailed m
y lips along the side of his face and nibbled softly on his ear. I could feel his entire body relaxing underneath my grip. I pressed myself close to him and felt him vibrating up against me.

“
Have you thought about it?” he asked me.

“
Yeah, I have,” I said.

“
You don’t have an answer.”

“
No… I don’t.”

I gave the promotion plenty of thought during the day but it wasn
’t nearly enough time for me to come up with a decision. I hoped that being here with Rafael would give me the answers I was looking for.

“
Why are you doing it?” I asked him.

“
What do you mean?”

“
Are you doing it for me? For yourself? Or for the company?”

“
I’m doing it for everybody.”

“
I understand that. You said it before. But why? Is it because you want everybody to see for themselves that you’re an
upstanding citizen
? Or do you just want to be with me?”

“
Why can’t it be both?”

“
What about Wesley and Travis? Aren’t they just as capable as I am?”

“
They’ll get their chance. I know they will.”

“
I just… don’t feel I’m ready for the opportunity, even though I
do
want to work alongside you.”

Without saying a word, Rafael closed his eyes and kissed me. For a moment, I forgot everything we were just talking about. He pulled away from me and when I slowly opened my eyes, I saw him staring back at me.

“What were you just thinking about?” he asked me.

“
What?”

“
What were you thinking about? Just now. When I kissed you.”

“…
Nothing. I wasn’t thinking about anything at all. I was just thinking about the kiss.”

“
The same goes for me. When I kiss you, it feels like the weight of the world is lifted from my shoulders. I don’t have another care in the world. I can do anything. That’s what it feels like when I’m with you. And I want you to be by my side as I try to lead this company. You make me a better person. Everybody is going to see that. You kissed me in Hawaii because you were tired of hiding. We weathered the storm. We got through it. Now it’s a blessing that we have to take advantage of.”