Almost Perfect: A BWWM Billionaire Single Parent Romance (9 page)

*****

The
air conditioner was turned on in the small sports car, not to cool
the atmosphere, but rather, the internal heat that suddenly emanated
from the crevice between Kimberly’s legs. For a split second,
she almost yielded. No machine could measure the effort it took to
separate her body from that of Richard Damask. Probably it was his
height, but there was something about him that drew her in. His eyes
were pained but a flame of resilience simmered there that made her
want to know more about him.

Protruding
and rigid, his erection didn’t go without notice and only by
forcing her fingers closed around a slip of tissue, did Kimberly stop
herself from reaching out and stroking it. Beads of perspiration
trickled down her brow as the engine of her car stirred to life and
Kimberly laughed at the irony. As Richard turned the key of her heart
and other places, so did she spark the engine of her vehicle. Pulling
off from her parked spot only after the valet knocked on the window,
she wondered if Richard preferred automatic or stick shift.

*****

3
am and no sleep planned to visit Richard for the second night in a
row. Kimberly was an apparition, a vapor and just as quickly as she
made her presence know, she misted away. Her lips were sweeter than
he imagined and found his tongue passing over the spot on his lips
where she left her essence. Probably if she was in a more comfortable
setting she would have permitted him to sample more of her. Would it
be out of place to call an employee at this hour? A glance at the
clock revealed it was 3:20 and he decided not to dial her digits. As
his mind cast back to the way her breasts pressed into his chest,
Richard felt his blood pressure rise once again. The other head on
his anatomy rose as well, much to Richard’s frustration. There
would be no sleep without release and for the first time in a long
while, Richard was forced to take himself in hand.

The
attorneys for the injured woman were coming in today. At 8 am two
short, unrefined gentlemen walked into the office of Kimberly Walsh
and in minutes, left a bitter taste in her mouth. Money hounds by
nature, they had simply picked up the scent of money and their client
was the poor uninformed individual chosen for their prey.

Mr.
Lawrence was bald, wormy looking and poorly spoken. His words came
out in short bursts similar to a stammer and determining what he
meant to say was a challenge. The other gentleman didn’t offer
much by way of interpretation as she simply nodded and echoed the
last words of his comrade.

“
Mrs.
Thomas has been significantly affected by the negligence of your
client and we will be asking for no less than five hundred thousand
dollars in damages. Personal and financial loss will also be
considered on the final tally of what we feel she is rightfully
owed.”

Before
Kimberly could retort to the ridiculous allegations and settlement
proposal, Richard burst in without knocking and promptly took a seat
on Kimberly’s side of the desk. Though a gentleman, Richard had
little patience for people who sought to take advantage of others
-regardless of social and financial status.

His
tirade was loud and getting louder when a vibrating sound on the desk
drew everyone’s attention. Rejecting the call and silencing the
phone Kimberly nodded for Richard to continue. In less than 15
seconds it began to ring again and this time Kimberly took note of
the phone number. Aunt Audrey never called during the day when she
was at work and Kimberly had already made her weekly phone call.

Excusing
herself, Kimberly left the men on a verge of explosion and stepped
into the hallway and swiped the screen to the right.

“
Hi
Auntie, what’s up?”

There
was no immediate response from the other end of the line only sobs.

“
Auntie,
why are you crying? What’s wrong?”

Fear
pricked the back of her throat and the tips of her ears grew hot as
the voice on the other end of the phone spoke.

“
This
is Maya. My mom just passed.”

“
What
are you talking about? I spoke to her just a few days ago and she was
fine! Are you sure?”

“
It
was lung cancer Kimberly. She didn’t want me to tell you, but
it’s been a while now. She went into the hospital last night
but they called an hour ago to say she wasn’t looking good. I
am here now. She died in my arms.”

Kimberly
had no idea she was screaming. The frantic footsteps on the floor
soon reached her side and Richard joined her on the floor where she
sat, cell phone tossed aside.

“
Kimberly!
What’s wrong? Kimberly talk to me. What’s happening?”

The
tears and screaming continued there on the floor of her new
workplace, and one by one coworkers gathered, concern on the faces of
the men, tears in the eyes of the women. The two lawyers emerged from
the office.

“
Mr.
Damask, are we going to be continuing this meeting today?”

Richard
addressed his answer to Kimberly’s secretary who was trying to
feed her a glass of water.

“
Call
security and get these two fucking idiots out of here. NOW!”

The
lawyers never waited for their personal escort out of building. They
were at the exit in a matter of minutes. After ten minutes if weeping
and wailing, Kimberly allowed Richard to help her to her feet.
Trembling with tear stained cheeks, she looked into his worried eyes
and said. “My aunt is dead Richard… she’s dead. Oh
my God, Richard, she’s dead.”

Addressing
the concerned crowd, he issued a directive. “Please leave us
alone. We need some privacy.”

Feet
shuffled and papers were taken to other work spaces in compliance
with the boss’s orders. Before the hall was completely empty,
Richard pulled a sobbing Kimberly to his chest and stroked her hair
in an effort to calm her. He couldn’t take away the pain, but
he could certainly try. For an hour, they sat uninterrupted. Kimberly
sobbed and stopped and then started her crying again. Her makeup
stained the shoulder of his tan jacket and her tears soaked his
shirt. Richard didn’t care.

As
difficult a time as this was, he needed to ask her some questions.
Did she need a leave of absence? Yes of course. When would she like
to go to her family? Tomorrow if possible. Did she need help with
funeral arrangements? She had no clue, she just wanted to sit there
and cry. Understanding the implied command to shut up, Richard put an
end to his questions and simply held her gently.

*****

Packing
for a funeral was not what Kimberly had planned to be doing on
Wednesday morning. 10 am came much too quickly and the small white
pills from Richards pharmacy friend didn’t seem to work. How
could Aunt Audrey keep her illness a secret from her? Thinking about
the way she must have suffered tore Kimberly’s heart open and
she found herself sobbing again.

Dressed
in denim because she couldn’t find anything else to wear,
Kimberly appeared to be a tower of strength and the large sunglasses
over her blood stained eyes covered any traces of her sadness.

The
building concierge rang at 10:15 to say the limo had arrived.
Kimberly opened the door to a waiting bellman who took her three
pieces of luggage to the elevator where she joined him on the trip to
the ground floor.

Once
inside the sleek, shiny vehicle with the help of the chauffeur,
Kimberly heaved a sigh of relief as the first step of putting her
dead aunt to rest was well on the way. If leaving her apartment was
such a trying task, what would happen in the next three days? Only
time would tell.

The
airport was busy, but not the area she drove into. The hangar for
private jets was housed behind the main airport. Deceptively plain,
it hid the splendid toys of the rich. Richard Damask, recent boss of
Kimberly Walsh, had offered not demanded that she use his private jet
to get to the LA as soon as possible. Saying that he needed things to
be as easy as possible for her in this dreadful time, silenced her
automatic refusal.

A
Lear jet was something Kimberly considered a waste of money, but in
times like this she was grateful that Richard had splurged. The steps
unfolded and stretched out its welcome to a grieving Kimberly and she
quickly took the steps and disappeared from sight. Even in grief, the
striking aircraft left Kimberly in awe. A voice cleared from the back
and there on one of the plush seats was Richard.

He
had been worried she would see his presence as an intrusion, but
surprisingly, she ran forward and encased his neck in a bear hug of
sorts and he reciprocated. This wasn’t and embrace of lust, but
rather one of gratitude. Richard thought it was nice to have a
friend.

*****

People
stared but no one asked who he was and why he was there. The family
wasn’t large, but it was big enough to fill the small chapel
with mourners to remember Aunt Audrey. A strong upstanding woman of
God, the preacher described her as, and the congregation nodded in
agreement. Kimberly said little to the people present and Richard
constantly glanced at her blank stare at the casket. He wished there
was more that he could do to make it better.

At
the grave side however, a once sedate Kimberly lost it. Her specially
purchased designer black suit and shiny pumps gave way to dirt as she
fell in grief when the beautiful ivory and brass casket containing
the remains of a woman she loved dearly, was lowered into the ground.
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, the preacher said and her wailing pitch
got higher. Kimberly was inconsolable.

The
wake was in the cramped apartment Audrey shared with her daughter and
as Richard held Kimberly’s hand and escorted her to the front
door teaming with people she stopped in her tracks.

“
I
can’t go in. I simply can’t.”

Richard
responded as softly and gently as possible, “You don’t
have to do anything you don’t want to.” With his cell
phone attached to his ear, Richard turned on his heels. “Stanley,
please bring the car around, Ms. Walsh is ready to leave.”

*****

The
reservation was made under each of their names. Richard was not so
presumptuous as to assume they would share a room. With him in room
ninety five and her in ninety six, he felt secure with Kimberly a
stone’s throw away.

The
bewitching hour rolled around and Richard was staring at the walls. A
sleep number mattress was chosen on reservation, but currently it did
nothing for his insomnia. It was just after 4 pm when Kimberly closed
her door and asked to be alone and she hadn’t been seen since.
Richard called a few times, but no one picked up her calls. After
losing a few thousand in the casino, he retired to his room. The
scotch he nursed did nothing to help.

Sitting
up straight in the bed because he thought he heard a noise, Richard
listened hard but nothing moved. Two minutes later there was another
sound, this time more loudly. In a leap he was off the bed and
yanking open the door. There Kimberly stood in a simple sports shorts
and a vest. She wanted to come in.

*****

Kimberly
woke up dazed and confused. She was having a nightmare in which her
aunt had died, after a few seconds of consciousness, she remembered
that it was tragically real. In their last conversation, Auntie had
encouraged her to live a full life. Only the best she wanted for her
niece, and she would only rest easy knowing Kimberly had it.

Why
do old people speak such haunting words before they die? Kimberly
wondered. A sudden peace descended on the room as Kimberly remembered
the trials of the woman who has taken a turn at mothering her. Never
fearful, and always a leader, Audrey made the most of what little she
had and threw herself fully into loving her husband.

Her
mind drifted to Richard, he didn’t have to help. As a matter of
fact, he didn’t have to do more than ask the staff to sign a
sympathy card. Going above what was necessary to make sure she was
comfortable was something that Kimberly admired. It seemed Richard
Damask was indeed a nice man. Would Audrey approve of her seeing a
white man? Once, after the question of Maya’s paternity became
a talking piece in the neighborhood, she had called the girls into
the room for an important pearl of wisdom.

“
In
life, you have to pick and choose those who you call friend. Some
want to take from you, some want to crush you, but then there are
some good folk, those who go far beyond the call to help and defend
you. It's people my children, that deserve your loyalty. No one
else.”

She
needed to see him. Kimberly wanted him to know that even though she
had a tough exterior, she was still gentle enough to understand that
he was now someone important in her life.”