ROMANCE: Bear Naked Seduction (Billionaire Bear Trio Book 1) (34 page)

“Yeah, I think so too,” he said in a soft voice, smiling as he looked at her.

“Dante…hey….I thought you were my Kung Pao chicken,” she said as she looked into his eyes, confused.

“I needed to see you,” he said. “And seeing as you ran out of Giovanni’s so fast…” he shrugged and sighed loudly. “I needed to see you,” he said again.

She shook her head.

“About what? We have nothing to say to each other.”

“Actually, we have a whole lot to say to each other,” Dante said just as the delivery guy walked up to the door.

“Kung Pao chicken, side of rice,” the young delivery guy said and she forced a smile. She was just about to hand him the twenty in her hand when Dante gave the delivery guy a hundred dollar bill.

“Whoa, bro…I don’t think I can break this… I don’t have enough…” the delivery guy started before Dante shook his head.

“It’s all right. You can keep it,” he said and the delivery guy looked at him, both surprised and confused.

“Look dude, I only need eighteen bucks,” he started before Dante shrugged.

“It’s all right. Really,” he said.

“Whoa… thanks man,” the delivery guy said leaving Dante standing at the doorstep holding Corrine’s takeout bag. He turned his attention to her and handed her the bag.

“You know, I can pay for my own food,” she said grabbing the bag.

“I know you can.” He put his hands in his pocket and sighed. “So, are you going to invite me in or are you going to just let me stand out here all night? Because I am not leaving until we talk.”

Corrine sighed and stepped aside so that he could walk in. She unwrapped her hair and her curls fell perfectly into place.

“I’m sorry… I only got the one order,” she said in a soft voice as she walked towards her kitchen.

“It’s all right. I’m not hungry… I just want to see you. To talk to you.” He watched her as she got half a bottle of red wine from the counter.

“Drink?” she asked and he nodded.

She got two glasses and poured the wine before she pushed one glass towards him. He looked at the glass and then at the bottle and a smile played on his lips.

“This is the bottle I got you after the launch of the fourth restaurant, huh?” he asked as he looked at her and she nodded.

“Yeah… and actually, you gave me a case. Heck, crate,” she said smiling. She raised her glass and took one long sip before she got a pair of chopsticks.

“Well, you were worth every single bottle in there,” he said.

She opened her box of chicken and took a bite. Until then, she had not realized just how hungry she really was. She took a few more bites and then sipped on her wine before she looked up at him.

“Guess someone really was hungry,” he said and she nodded.

“As it turns out I haven’t had a chance to eat anything all day. So… I guess I’m allowed.”

“Well, now that you are full maybe we should talk.”

“Dante, you and I have nothing to talk about,” she said but he shook his head.

“You and I both know that is not true, Corrine.”

She rolled her eyes. He was beginning to get to her. She was feeling like she had a fire inside her. A fire that he had started weeks ago when he started asking her out. And this was it. This was the straw that was finally going to break her back. She dropped her chopsticks and sighed loudly.

“I am beginning to think that letting you in was a terrible idea,” she started.

“Wait… what?” he asked and she dabbed the sides of her mouth,

“Because you are trying to bed me and I am not interested in being your flavor of the month, Dante. I don’t think I ever will.” He looked at her and shook his head.

“I am not trying to make you into a flavor of the month, Corrine.”

“Really?” She hated the fact that she had a condescending tone but she could not help it. “Because I have seen you with every kind of skinny woman in the world. Models, actresses, celebrities and suddenly you want your average fat black girl around the corner?”

She was so furious that she didn’t even realize he had walked round the counter to where she was. He stood in front of her and almost immediately, her throat went dry. It was like she had not been the one who had been talking just seconds earlier. He held her waist and she felt a chill going through her body. She knew what was about to happen. She was about to relive what had happened earlier that day.

“I have all these women because I am always looking for something. Looking for what you have in them and I can never really find it,” Dante said in a soft voice.

“What are you talking about?” she asked.

“It is you I want, Corrine. You are the one I have always wanted.” He slowly brought a hand up and held the back of her neck. “I don’t want you as a flavor of the month. I want you. Period.”

She shook her head.

“Dante…” she started as she looked at him.

“What is your reason for pushing me away, Corrine? Because I know that there is no one in your life right now,” he said. “You have no reason to refuse me.”

She tried pushing him off but she just didn’t have the will to.

“I want you and I know you want me too.” He pushed her wet hair back and began lowering his head. “Just let me have you.”

“I am not property, Dante,” she whispered and he smiled.

“You have been mine for a really long time, you just didn’t realize it. Until now.” He kissed her lips softly and she closed her eyes when she felt his lips on hers. He was kissing her warmly, taking her lower lip in between his own warm ones. He pulled her even closer and crushed her against his body before he pulled away from her. “I have been dying to do that ever since I first saw you,” he said in a low voice.

“Really?” She was whispering. He nodded and his eyes fell to the V of her robe that showed off her generous cleavage.

“And I really don’t want to stop by just kissing you,” he whispered as he gently tugged on the chords of her bathrobe. “But I don’t want to make it look like all I want is…” his voice trailed off when she pushed herself into him and kissed him softly.

“I don’t want you to stop,” she said when she pulled away.

A smile played on his lips and he lifted her up to place her on the counter. She gasped when he untied her bathrobe chords and pulled the two ends apart exposing her damp nudity to him.

“You are even more beautiful than I imagined,” he whispered before he kissed her once more. She exhaled into his mouth when he filled her hand with her breast. She was moaning softly and he was claiming her lips, her cheek and her neck. His hand was slowly going down her back to the soft bump that was the start of the curve of her ass. She had not been handled like this in a very long time… actually, no one had ever been this way with her. So slow, so soft and so gentle. She could feel that he really did have serious feelings for her. It might have been ridiculous to think like that but the truth was that she was indeed feeling what he was. She slowly brought a hand up and held the side of his cheek as he gently pushed his tongue into her mouth. She sighed softly and allowed his tongue to find hers. What she did not know at that moment was that the sound she made at the back of her throat, that soft purr she made at the back of her throat roused every neuron in his body, made every hair stand at edge. She could not see him or feel him but at that moment, he was so hard and all he could think of doing was sinking himself inside her. Taking her in every single way. It took everything he had not to bring her down from the counter bend her over and just fuck her.  He began tracing his kisses down her neck to her chest. He raised his head briefly to look at her but she had her eyes closed and her lips slightly parted. He went on lower and lower, brushing his lips against his right nipple before he put his hands on either knee. He gently parted her legs and fondled her breast gently before he began tracing his lips down one thigh to her knee and then up the other one.

A soft moan escaped Corrine’s lips when she felt him getting closer and closer to her core. Instinctively, she spread herself wider and Dante needed no second bidding. He suddenly engulfed her already moist cunt with his mouth and began running his tongue over her clit. He was kissing her, licking her, sucking her and even nibbling at her most sacred, most sensitive part. Corrine was not sure whether it was the fact that she had not had anyone so anything sexual to her in a long time or just that Dante was that good but she was already climaxing and he wouldn’t slow down. He kept on kissing and licking her, literally eating her out. He was making her shiver, her legs shaking as he tried desperately to hold her steady.

“Fuck, Dante!” she cried out as she felt another orgasm ripping through her. He pulled away and kissed her softly. She could taste herself on his lips.

“I want you, Corrine,” he said in a whisper. “I want to have you right here. Right now.”

She was still shivering as he held her gently. She could not even bring herself to speak because she was so overwhelmed but Dante could see past her physical weakness. He knew that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. He picked her up in his arms and carried her over to the couch where he laid her down gently. He began taking off his clothes, removing his jacket first, and then slowly unbuttoning his shirt, almost as if he was teasing her before he unzipped his pants. She gasped silently when he pushed his pants off revealing his engorged cock. He gently got on the couch and settled himself in between her legs. Her heart was racing.

“Dante… I’m scared,” she whispered when he positioned his cock at her opening. “I have never…” she started before he raised an eyebrow over the other in surprise.

“Are you trying to tell me you’re a virgin?” he asked in a whisper and she shook her head reluctantly.

“I’m not a virgin but I might as well be… I mean, it’s been six years since… the last time,” she finally said. He gently touched the side of her face and smiled.

“I would never hurt you. Not in my wildest dreams,” he said as he began moving the bulbous head of his cock over her now dripping pussy. She gasped when he began pushing himself into her, stretching her out as he went on pushing in. She buried her head in his shoulder and dug her fingers into his shoulder. She moaned when he pulled out and gasped loudly when he pushed back in. “You okay?” he whispered in her ear and she nodded.

“Yeah,” she said before he began to slowly move himself in and out of her. With every stroke, he was stretching her out to her limits and she was surprising herself that she was able to accommodate his entire length. In no time, he had buried his entire length to the hilt and she had a leg around his waist, pulling him closer and deeper. She could feel the tension inside her building up and she knew that she was about to climax: again. She began nibbling his earlobe hoping that giving herself something to do would fool her body into not giving into her desires. But she was wrong. She was suddenly exploding once more and he was keeping steady as her orgasm made her vaginal walls spasm. By the time her orgasm died down, he was ready to explode and he had held back as long as he possibly could. He suddenly began moving himself in and out of her faster and deeper than ever, as he exploded inside her. He buried himself inside her one last time and let out a loud groan as he sent his seed deep inside her, not caring that he had not even used a condom.

“Oh fuck, baby,” he whispered as he held her close. “Do you have any idea what you do to me?” He moaned softly as his cock slipped out of her pussy.

They were still panting as he gently laid himself next to her and cradled her.

“What does this mean?” she asked as she felt his hot breath on the back of her neck. “Because I don’t want to be just another trophy on your scoreboard, Dante.”

He rested on his elbow and looked at her.

“Look at me.” It was more of an order than a request. “Look at me, Corrine,” he said again when she hesitated.

“You are the ultimate trophy. The one that can never be showcased on some scoreboard.” He gently stroked her hair. “I want you in my life. Forever.”

“Are you sure?” she asked and he smiled.

“Well, I’m here. Aren’t I?” he asked.

“Yes, but what next?”

“I will have to figure that out when I get back,” he said, still caressing her cheek.

“You’re leaving?” she asked and he nodded.

“Just for a couple of weeks. I need to oversee the new hotel launch in Virginia.”

“Oh,” Corrine said, in a sad voice.

“Your company is still taking care of that. How about you come with me?” he asked and she shook her head.

“My business partner takes care of that side of business. And I can’t leave yet… with Simon and Mona…” she started before he brought himself down and kissed her softly.

“I have a vested interest in making sure we work out. And you by now you should know that I don’t give up easily,” he said in a whisper and she nodded.

“Okay,” she said, forcing a smile.

Chapter 2

What was supposed to be a two week trip to Virginia for Dante turned out to be a longer trip after an explosion went off in Richmond, a few blocks from where Dante was setting up his restaurant. At first, Corrine had been scared out of her mind trying to get in touch with Dante after news of the explosion broke. All she wanted to know was if he was all right and when he was coming home. But he never called. Or texted. Or emailed. It was like he had gone cold turkey on her and she was increasingly getting nervous. No one knew where he was. Not even his second in command. She had actually taken it upon herself to call every restaurant he owned on the country just to find out if anyone knew where he was. When it hit three weeks and she had not heard from him, she was convinced that she was living her biggest fear. Her worst nightmare. Actually, two of her worst nightmares. That something had happened to him and that she had been a booty call.

He had come to her when he wanted a curvy woman and said all the right things and she had bought it all. Every single last word. As far as she was concerned, his disappearing act was a little too convenient. She could not help but feel like Dante had used her. And fine, maybe in the present state, she did sound like a silly deranged selfish bitch considering the country was in a state of emergency. But at the back of her mind she was still feeling like she had been lied to. Like there were too many layers to Dante she still had to uncover. She didn’t know what to do. And everything had just become worse when she realized that she was late and she was never late. Her period was always on time. It was like clockwork. Every 22
nd
day of the month. She was not sure what she was more scared of. Dante’s safety. Her own piece of mind or that her one momentary lapse of judgment might have meant that she and Dante Giovanni were bound for life.

It was on a Thursday morning and she had just walked into the G-Spot. There was supposed to be a birthday party there later that evening. She was not very sure whose birthday it was. All she knew was that someone was splashing eighty grand on a high profile party and that the flower budget was seventy five hundred. And at that moment, that was the only thing she wanted to focus on. Lucky for her, Simon and Mona were both back so she didn’t have to bend over backwards.

“Hey Mona,” she said in a soft voice as she walked in.

“Hey, boss. Don’t worry we are still in very good time.” Mona turned around and looked at Corrine. “Are you all right? You look… sick.”

Corrine forced a smile and nodded.

“I just need to have some water and maybe some fresh air,” she said as she looked around and then shrugged. “Who orders flowers for a birthday party anyway?”

“I know, right?” Mona said smiling. “But hey, their extravagance is my paycheck so, who I’m I to complain?”

Corrine nodded.

“Yeah, I guess.” She looked around again and sighed. “Has anyone heard from Dante yet?”

Mona looked at her boss and raised an eyebrow over the other.

“You have been awfully curious about Mr. Giovanni lately. Anything I should know about?”

Corrine shook her head.

“Nothing serious. Just business.” She dug through her bag and pulled out her phone. “When you are done here, would you check on the high rise complex downtown? The security guy told me that the building manager needs to make a change of flower arrangements…” her voice trailed off when her phone buzzed in her hand. She looked at her screen and felt her heart skipping a beat. It was a text from Dante.

Hey. We need to talk. Come over to my place? I really need to talk to you.

She was suddenly breathing hard and heavy.

“Corrine? Are you okay?” Mona asked and Corrine looked up.

“I’m fine. Take care of this and the high rise complex and have Simon handle the other restaurants.”

“He already is,” Mona said in a soft voice. “Are you okay?”

Corrine’s hand squeezed around her phone.

“I’m fine. I need to leave… I need to go.”

She turned around and began walking towards the door.

“Go where?” Mona called after her but Corrine was either too engrossed to hear her or simply chose to ignore her. “Corrine!” Mona called out but she didn’t care to answer her. She could not get to her car fast enough. All she wanted to do was to see Dante. To look into his eyes so that she could get the answers she so much needed.

The drive to his place seemed longer than she had anticipated. It seemed like forever before she finally got there. She had never really been there but she had always figured it was a few minutes away from his restaurants but as it turned out, it was a whole forty minutes away because he loved being away from the city center. He was literally living on the outskirts of town… the leafy suburban area of Northern Michigan. When she pulled up in front of his huge mansion, she could not help but wonder why a man who lived on his own needed so much room. She took a long, deep breath as she parked her Prius in his driveway. She had been planning her words all the way to his place but now that she was there, she could not help but wonder what she was supposed to say. Her heart skipped a beat when she got to his door and before she even rang the bell, the door was opened and there was Dante, standing at the door looking as dashing as ever even in a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt. She looked into his eyes and shook her head, confused, angry and disappointed.

“Hey,” he said in a soft voice and she parted her lips to answer him but she couldn’t. Her throat was dry and there were tears in her eyes. She wanted to hug him and at the same time, she wanted to slap him. “I know you are a little pissed off right now…”

“A little pissed off? Are you kidding me?” she asked when she suddenly found her voice.

“Why don’t you come on in?” he asked but she was still rooted to the spot. He was not taking no for an answer. He reached for her hand and pulled her into the house. She yanked her hand away and he led her to the living room. “Can I get you something to eat?”

“No, I’m fine,” she said. “Where the hell have you been?”

“Well, you know about the explosion in Richmond, right?” he asked and she rolled her eyes.

“Precisely why I have been blowing up your phone. You could have at least text me a ‘K’ or something so I wouldn’t go out of my freaking mind!” she was now thumping her fists on his shoulder.

“Stop it, Corrine,” he said, holding her but she was still doing it.

“You selfish son of a bitch!” she went on and he held her hands in his own.

“Corrine. I SAID STOP IT!” She suddenly stopped talking and looked into his eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks. “I lost my phone and I got a concussion…”

“What?” she asked, surprised.

“I was trying to help with the rescue efforts. And there was a child trapped under a broken slab… I was trying to move it and something dropped on my back of my head. Next thing I knew I was waking up in a hospital and with the mess that was going on with the explosion… I was a John Doe until I woke up two days ago.”

“You only woke up two days ago?” She was suddenly feeling like the biggest jerk in the world. “And who the hell is that?” she asked when she saw a blond walking into the room.

“My house nurse. That was the only way I was going to get released… Gloria Velez, this is my girlfriend, Corrine.”

Corrine looked into his eyes.

Girlfriend, he had said. He already thought of her as a girlfriend. She suddenly felt like the biggest jerk in the world.

“Nice to meet you Corrine but Mr. Giovanni you need to sit down,” Gloria said. “If you are not going to stay in bed then you should at least keep off your feet.” She turned to Corrine. “You know he got out of hospital AMA? I mean, with his concussion, he shouldn’t even be flying.”

“I needed to be back home. I needed to see Corrine,” he said as he sat down. He looked at Corrine for a long second before he turned to look at Gloria. “Would you give us some privacy? I need to talk to Corrine. Alone.”

Gloria looked a little uncomfortable but Corrine forced herself to smile at her.

“I’ll make sure he stays off his feet,” she said.

“And make sure he drinks this,” Gloria said as she handed Corrine a glass of what looked like green goo.

“Not the goo again,” Dante muttered.

“The goo will replenish your electrolytes,” Gloria said. She looked at Corrine. “I can count you, right?”

“He will take every last drop,” Corrine said. “I promise.”

“Good. I’ll go to the hospital and pick up some supplies and maybe pass by the grocery store.” Gloria took her bag and began walking towards the door. “I should be back in an hour and a half. Two tops.”

Corrine looked at the glass in her hand and shrugged.

“What on earth is this?” she asked sniffing the cold goo.

“I don’t know but so far, I know there is spinach in there, banana, avocado, beets and oranges.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “At least that is what I can make out.”

She walked up to where he was and handed him the glass.

“Do I have to?” he asked.

“Doctor’s orders.” She sat down next to him and looked at him as he looked into his glass almost like he was trying to plan out how he was going to drink it.

“Would you at least get me a bottle of water to wash it down?” he asked and she nodded. “Kitchen’s right down there.”

“Thanks,” she said as she stood up. “So, I have to admit. I was really angry with you,” she said when she came back holding two bottles of water.

“I can only imagine,” he said before he downed the glass of goo. He then opened the bottle of water and took a few sips. “But you have to understand, I would have never put you through that. Deliberately.”

She forced a smile and shrugged.

“You believe me, don’t you?” he asked and she nodded reluctantly. “Corrine… I don’t want to freak you out but I am falling for you and I would never hurt you. You have to know that.”

She bit her lower lip and opened her own bottle before she took a long sip. It was not that she did not believe him. It was that she was not sure what she was about to tell him was going to make things worse or better.

“Corrine, what’s on your mind? You look like you are a million miles away right now.”

She took a long deep breath.

“Dante, I’m late,” she said in a low voice.

“Late? For what?” he asked and she shrugged. “Oh… oh… wow… okay. Are you sure?”

She shook her head.

“I took a pill after… you know but I guess things just didn’t…” she sighed. “I got a couple of home pregnancy tests… or five. Can’t leave this to chance…” her voice trailed off. “But you don’t have to feel obliged to stick around or anything…” He reached for her neck and pulled her down to kiss her. It was a long soft kiss, the kind that put all her doubts to rest. The kind that let her know he meant every single word of what he had been saying not just at that moment but also what he had been telling her all those months earlier.

“Do you need something…? I don’t really know how this goes.”

“I just need to pee on a stick. Or maybe all five.”

“Bathroom’s right down the hall,” he said in a soft voice. He was about to get up but she put a hand on his thigh. “You need to stay off your feet. I’ll be back in a jiffy.”

She smiled before she stood up and walked to the bathroom. With every step she took closer to the bathroom, she could feel her heart pounding harder and harder. When she got there, she ripped one test out of its pack and peed on the strip. The three minutes seemed so much longer but when she saw it was positive, she could not believe it. So she took another one and then another one… until she was all out of tests.

Her heart was pounding so hard and so loud she could almost hear it as she slowly made her way back to the living room, Dante looked even more anxious than she was. He wanted to stand up and walk up to where she was but he also knew that she wouldn’t let him.

“Well?” he asked and she bit her lower lip.

“Positive,” she said in a soft voice “All five of them.”

A tear rolled down her cheek and Dante stood up to walk up to where she was.

“I’m going to be a father?” he asked, excitedly but all she could feel was fear. She nodded and he gently used his thumb to wipe the tear off her cheek. “Hey, this is great. I told you that I am already falling for you… heck, I am already in love with you. I have been since… I first saw you.”

“But this is going to change everything, Dante,” she whispered. “We are skipping through at least ten different stages.”

“So, what… I have my entire life to live through every stage of life. The living together, the dating, the sleepless nights… every single one of them.” He held her face in his hands and kissed her softly as she held his waist.

“I’m so scared… I mean I haven’t been with anyone for six years and suddenly I’m pregnant and…” she shook her head. “I don’t have the first idea how to be a mother.”

“And you think I know how to be a father?” he took her hand and led her back to the couch. “I think most people just make this stuff up as they go along.”

Another tear rolled down her cheek and she closed her eyes.

“You still have doubts don’t you? About me? About us?” he asked and she bit her lip again.