ROMANCE: DBL Coverage (Bad Boy Sports Romance)(Alpha Male Football Romance) (Contemporary New Adult Womens Fiction Romance) (22 page)

Chapter 9

Will stayed up for almost an hour watching her sleep so peacefully next to him. He wanted so badly to wake her up and take her again. He had never felt such unsatisfied lust for someone immediately after having them in such a way. She was intoxicating to his senses, driving him wild with the way she way. Aria knew when to fight and when to back down, a trait that he admired.

But there was something more. William felt as if she had somehow crawled inside of him, right next to his heart and taken up residency there. In such a short time, Will had become smitten and he wondered if he was really the one in control. Her very smile could change his day, as it had at the bar. Now that he had gotten a taste of what she had to offer, he was no longer able to deny that she filled a void that he did not even know he had.

It was too soon to be love, but Will was feeling more for her than he had felt before. He actually wanted to get to know her, learn about her. That he wanted to see her again or even talk to her afterwards, told him that she was different. Maybe he was different.  The longer he watched her, the more he was confused by what he felt.

His hand gently caressed the side of her face. She moved next to him, stretching and then curling closer to him, sighing gently as his heat soothed whatever it was in her dream that had riled her. William closed his eyes to sleep with Aria, actually wanting to see her in the morning. All of the feelings were new, but they excited him and he was ready to see where it would go.

Her body felt right against his and he held her tight to his chest. Their legs entwined and Will felt at peace in the moment and with her.

***

“Will needs you to go down to his house and figured out what is going on with the maids. He called earlier and couldn’t get a hold of anyone.”

It was a strange request, but Aria was getting used to doing whatever the man’s whim was that day. She followed her GPS to the huge house and pushed open the front door. There was no one in the home and as she walked through the foyer, she noticed the same handwriting and her name on an envelope.

“I know how much you like choice Aria or the illusion of it, so go downstairs and choose one. I will be there soon.”

Aria was not sure what he was talking about and like before, she knew that her choice would have consequences. Everything with Will did. There were always consequences and unbelievable pleasure involved. She walked down the stairs to her left slowly and when she got to the blackened room, her hand felt around the wall until she switched on the light.

She gasped at what she found down there. It was an apparent play room and Aria did not know if she was ready for that kind of play. Her hands touched some of the apparatuses. One in particular caught her eye. She imagined herself inside of it, locked in and helpless. The idea made her shiver again, her thighs squeezing together.

“I see you like the stocks. Is that your choice?”

THE END

An Alpha Billionaire Romance

By: Carly White

At His Demand

Chapter 1

“Tilly, will you get that customer for me please? I need to get that invoice number from this guy and he put me on hold again.”

Tilly nodded and went from the back of the small bookstore. It was the only one in town that wasn’t a big box store, still small and intimate in the Chicago area. Most of the smaller bookstores had been closed down during the turn of the economy, but somehow she had kept the family store in business. It was no small feat, but it was their new focus on ancient texts that she gave the change to.

With full time classes that she had to keep above a 3.5 gpa, it was not easy to keep up with everything. If it wasn’t for great employees like Marla that had been with the family for years, Tilly probably would have sold out to the developers years ago. But she hadn’t, so there she was on one of her two days off, trying to make sense of the invoices that all needed to be paid. The store was staying afloat, but just barely most of the time.

Focusing on the boxes of books that had to be put up still, she made her way to the front and to the back of a man in a suit. “Hi, can I help you Sir?”

“Took long enough.”

He turned around, his dark eyes taking in the slight girl. “Wow that was rude. Would you like to start again?”

His lips raised in a smile as his eyes took her in. She could feel the heat of his gaze and it made her blush slightly before she remembered herself. “What can I do for you?”

Thomas was a little taken aback by the way the girl was talking to him. She couldn’t have been very old and his mind instantly went to today’s youth. “Does your boss know that you talk to potential customers that way? It doesn’t seem to be good business.”

She shrugged. “Would you like to tell her?”

He shook his head that he wouldn’t. “Good, you probably would like her even less.” Her eyes waited for him to say something. He seemed at a loss of words, but he was quite handsome in his own way, if he didn’t talk of course.

“Yes, I hear that you have the best ancient book collection in the city, so I guess I am just here to look around.”

Tilly smiled finally. If he was a customer, the least she could do was muster a semblance of politeness. “Right this way. I will show you where they are and if you are looking for anything in particular, I am sure that we can find it for you if we don’t have it. Or try anyways.”

“Thank you….”

“Tilly.”

“Thank you Tilly, my name is Thomas Longhairn.”

She nodded, but he looked at her expectantly, like she was supposed to know who he was. She didn’t, so she left him to it. He watched her leave, his dark eyes taking in the curve of her bottom as she walked away. He had not come there with any other intention but to check out the books. Now his mind was more on the smart-mouthed girl behind the counter.

“Ms. Tilly, Carlos is on the phone. He wants to know if you are running the ad budget same as last month?”

Tilly knew that she should, but unless they had a really good end of week, they would not have the money for it. “Go ahead and tell him that I will give him a call later. I need to go through the sales first to see.”

Marla nodded and the older woman went back to the back and the newspaper rep on hold. The store had been running the same ad for twenty years, her mother before her. But it seemed that it may be the first month that they did not. That in and of itself, would be a big let-down to her. It was like it was going to be the beginning of the end. She needed to worry about her English test the next day, but all she could think about was Ripley’s Way.

She went to the boxes in the back hallway, dragging one out so that she could fill in the front display. Tilly started to put them up, going to her knees to start from the bottom shelves. Her skirt was just over her knees to keep her from flashing anyone, but she still had to seat herself just so, so that didn’t happen. Thinking about all of the bills that still had to be paid, she sent a little pray heavenward, hoping for a good weekend of sales. There were a few flyers out, as well as posters for a ten percent off weekend, so she was hoping that it would drum up some extra business.

“Tilly?”

Surprised to hear the dark voice behind her, she looked up to see the man from before, Thomas she thought she remembered. “Did you need something?”

There was a spark in his eyes and then it was gone. “Do you have baskets or something that I can put these in?”

She noticed the large stack in his hands. “You want all of those?”

“Yes and there are a few more, but I didn’t see any carts or anything.”

“Well this isn’t really Wal-Mart. I don’t think most people buy like that. Here let me take them and I will put them up at the front.”

She stood up and he still towered over her like when she was sitting down. He was just a very large man and he made her feel even shorter than her five foot, four inch height. Grabbing them out of his hands, she walked towards the register and set them down. Reading the spines as she went, she found his choices interesting. “Are you taking a trip to Peru soon?”

“I am actually. How did you know?”

“Well, all of those sights are in Peru, so I figured so. It is a place on my bucket list. When I finish school, I am planning on going out that way for a few months. Plus, you can’t beat the beaches in South America.”

“You go to school?”

“Yeah, the business school over by the museum.”

“And you manage this place?”

“Well I own it now, but yeah. It keeps me busy and away from tramping in the jungle like I want to. What do you do?”

“I, um, well I run a business as well.”

“Yeah you looked like one of those corporate sharks. Could see it in the suit as you walked in.”

The very distain that she seemed to have for his type, made him want to say that he was someone else. He had never had the sensation before, always proud to be who he was and to come from one of the wealthiest families in Illinois. But to have her look at him in that way did not suit Thomas at well and he found himself lying.

“I wish. I am a small business man. It is rented.”

Why was he humbling himself for this woman? He didn’t know the answer to the silent question in his head, but he knew that he liked the softening of her features. “Good, because those types are what is wrong with America. Thank goodness, because you are too smart and good looking to be another mindless droll looking to make your next billion.”

“You seem very…passionate about it.”

“Well someone has to be.”

It was as good an answer as any. He walked back to the section and grabbed the last couple of books that he had found on Machu Picchu. The woman was jarring to his senses and when he looked back, she was already back to her own work and he was out of her mind. It was not the type of reaction that he was used to getting from women. He had never been turned down by one yet, but he wondered if Tilly would. He kind of thought she would and for some reason the challenge made him want to anyways.

Going back up to the front, he picked up one of her business cards and slid it into his pocket before she walked up behind him. “Did you find everything you were looking for?”

“Almost.”

“Anything I can help you find or maybe order?”

“No I don’t think what I want can be ordered.”

“You would be surprised what I can get my hands on.”

Her innocent answers were almost as bad as the overwhelming need to kiss her full lips. What was wrong with him today, he thought to himself? “No, this will be all, thank you.” Thomas groaned at himself, he had the perfect opportunity and instead he passed it up. He was being lame like the young men that he made fun of that would be tongue-tied by a pretty girl. There was something about the curvy, little blonde that made him pause more than once.

“Okay, well it seems you have enough to keep you busy for a while. You’ll have to come back in and tell me how it went. I still have another year and a half till I finish my Masters. It seems like forever right now.”

“I will definitely be back.”

He went to his wallet as she rang up his order. Thomas almost pulled out his black card, but instead, just paid the hefty bill in cash. It probably raised her eyebrow that he had several thousand in cash on him for books, but she didn’t say anything. The black card would have been worse, everyone knew what it meant and he was not supposed to be a corporate droll as she so aptly put it.

“Do you ever get a day free with your busy schedule?”

Tilly looked up. “Are you hitting on me?”

“Definitely.”

“Well, not really, but you are cute. You are just not really my type.”

His smile was quick. He was right and the fact that she had turned him down made him want to chuckle. “Ouch. That was harsh. What is your type?”

Tilly was not expecting the question. She had expected him to see it as the nice no that it was, but he was not reading through the lines. “I don’t know.”

“Wow, even worse. Just not me huh?”

She pushed the bags that had his books in it and smiled. “Look, I am sure you are really nice and all, but I don’t date men like you.”

“Like me?”

“You know, come in here with your suit that cost more than my old family house, buying up a couple grand in books. I mean, don’t get me wrong, you paid for my advertising for the month and for that I am grateful.”

“But?”

“But that doesn’t mean that I want to date a guy that throws money around so easily. I don’t know what you do, but I doubt it has anything to do with small. They don’t rent those kind of suits Sir.”

Thomas couldn’t hold back his laughter. He was pegged but he would not concede to her. “Sometimes you have to look away from the routine, to find what you are really looking for.”

“I suppose. Sounds like a fortune cookie to me.”

“I will see you again Tilly. Have a great day.”

He left the store feeling strangely invigorated. Looking down at his overstuffed bags, her words made a little sense. How many people would just go buy all the books on one subject, just because they could? Shaking his head, he tried to forget about the quick-witted girl in the bookstore that had a tongue sharper than his.

***

While Tilly had tried to appear not afflicted by the encounter, it was hard to when he left. She could feel her palms partly sweaty and her heart still beat hard in her chest. It was a good thing that all of that could be hidden, because it would have been embarrassing if he would have known. What a strange day it was turning out to be.

“Marla?”

“Yeah.”

“Call Carlos back and tell him to put up the usual. I will send him a check later this evening.”

“Okay.”

Yes, what a strange day indeed.