Sudden Devotion (9 page)

Sara picked up her fork to try her dish when Mitch took her hand, interrupting her. “You didn’t say a word.”

She smiled up at him, knowing there could be no way for her to explain to him how good he made her feel about herself. She shrugged. “I could only think of two.”

Mitch was waiting while she took a bite. Watching her chew and swallow before delicately dabbing her mouth with her napkin he finally asked, “Well? What are they?”

“Thank you.”

He smiled. “You’re welcome, honey. Is it good?” He indicated the chicken marsala as he dug in for his first bite.

On her second mouthful, Sara nodded. “Mmm, hmm.”

Throughout dinner, they asked each other questions about one another. They spoke about their families and their friends. They learned about each other’s childhoods and laughed over one another’s stories.

Sara watched as Mitch. He seemed to be fighting something, but she tried to push the thought aside, not wanting to worry about what it might be.

Signing the credit card receipt, Mitch offered her some more wine, which she shook her head at. “No thanks. Do you have an early day tomorrow? Should we get home or – yeah, we should head home.”

“Sara. Am I going to have to spank you right here in the restaurant?”

Sara hid her face in her hands and tried to muffle her laughter. The waiter had just walked up behind Mitch as he said the word spank. The shock on his face was too hilarious for her to hold back. Waiting for the waiter to walk away, Sara looked back up at him with tears in her eyes from laughing so hard.

“Ha ha. Very funny. You could have warned me, you know. Besides, it’s your fault. Why don’t you just tell me what you want to do?”

“I never said I…all right. How do you do that, anyway? You always know when I’m holding back with you.”

“It’s a gift.” He winked at her, quirking one eyebrow up.

“I was thinking that maybe we could take a walk downtown here. You know, burn some of the dinner off.”

Getting up from his chair and going around to pull hers out for her, he whispered in her ear. “Okay, but sooner or later, those panties are coming off.”

She looked over her shoulder at him and couldn’t help but smile. “I would expect nothing less of you.”

They walked downtown past the shops, restaurants, and cafes. Holding hands, they commented on things they saw in the windows and people they passed on the street.

After a couple of blocks, Mitch put a possessive arm around Sara after a couple of men outside of a bar whistled at her. Deciding she liked the feel of being under the crook of his arm, she snuggled her body closer into his.

Walking back to the restaurant parking lot, there were no words, only silence. In the past two days, the two of them had taken each other’s bodies to places of extreme pleasure. They were on their first date and had discussed their lives and past.

In the comfortable peace that came over them as they strolled side by side, each of them wondered to themselves if they would or could have a future together. Although neither one asked the other, both were hoping that the possibility was there.

Mitch opened Sara’s door and closed it once she was inside. Going around the front of the car, he got in behind the wheel and started the car. They smiled at each other as he exited the parking lot. Neither one of them noticed the white car sitting under the street light. Nor did they notice the woman’s eyes that glared at them in the shadows of the driver’s seat.

On the drive home, they listened to music and the quiet comfort that had washed over them on their walk continued to linger. Reaching over the console, Mitch picked up her hand and brought it to his mouth to kiss it. He wondered once again where this tenderness she kept bringing out in him came from.

Sara turned to face him. “Mitch, remember rule number two?”

He nodded as he kissed her hand again.

“Well, it’s no pressure. I mean if you can’t, I will understand, but I was wondering if there was any way you could stay the night with me tonight.” She expelled a huge breath that seemed as though she had been holding forever.

He set her hand down on his thigh and brought his hand up to her cheek to brush his knuckles across it. “I hoped you would ask. I packed a bag.” He motioned his head to the backseat, indicating the bag.

She smiled. “Good. At the risk of sounding selfish, it felt really good falling asleep in your arms last night.”

Did it ever? “I know. I’m glad, honey.” He winked at her. “Okay, we’re here.”

Pulling into a parking space, he retrieved his bag before heading up to her apartment. He draped an arm around her, and he felt the quiet contentment that had encompassed them earlier.

Mitch took her key from her and opened the door to her apartment. Walking inside, she locked up for the night. Without a word spoken to the other, both went back to the bedroom. With just a small bedside table lamp on the nightstand, they undressed in front of one another as they stared into each other’s eyes. Neither one of them released the hold of their gazes from the other.

When the last of their garments were strewn on the floor, Mitch brushed his fingers gently up the outside of her arms. He brought them up to caress first her shoulders and then up her neck to frame her face. The look of desire in her eyes matched his. But it wasn’t urgent. There were no demands, no need to rush into it with a frenzy.

As Mitch gently brushed his thumbs on her lips, he said, “Sara, you are so beautiful.” Bringing his mouth down to meet hers in a passionate but tender kiss. The feelings that churned inside him confused him. And those same feelings caused him to say something that first surprised her and then himself. “Sara, let me love you.”

She stared at him as Mitch wondered where the request had come from. First of all, he had never had a shortage of women when he wanted one, so he never had to ask a woman that in such a pleading tone. Secondly, he had asked women to let him fuck them, screw them, and all sorts of other euphemisms. But never had he used the word love.

He wanted to be angry with her for muddling up his emotions. He wanted to pull away from her and leave. He didn’t want to fall for her. But instead of being angry, pulling away, or denying that he was falling for her, he kissed her again and took her to bed.

And while their bodies joined with just as much fire and frenzy as the other times, he knew in that moment that they were connecting with each other in a way that neither of them had expected or were willing to speak of.

* * * *

Later in bed that night as Sara lay in the crook of Mitch’s arm, he wondered what in the hell had happened. He couldn’t sleep as he lay there holding her and rubbing his hand up and down her back. When he had loomed over her body just a little over an hour before and came with her, he felt his heart clench. When he screamed her name, that time it wasn’t just out of pleasure from his orgasm, but from the overwhelming ache in his chest. He was a single man who had always enjoyed his bachelorhood. He knew now that was a thing of the past and now, he was screwed. As he held her in his arms, he knew that while that chapter was closing, was blessed to be starting a new one, with her.

Chapter Seven

The next day, Sara arrived at work high on life. She all but skipped and sang as she went about her morning. Even one of the partners had commented to her that she was in an exceptionally chipper mood. Finishing a brief that needed to be done, she went to the Xerox room to make copies. Standing with her back to the door, a voice startled her.

She turned to see Claudia standing in the doorway. A look of disgust etched her face. “Claudia, you scared me. Did you need to use the copier? I’ll just be a minute.”

Claudia snorted in disgust. “God, you’re so pathetic. We both are secretaries here, and yet you cower at the idea that I might need the copier.”

Sara was a bit taken back by Claudia’s rudeness, but the girl had made no secret in the past that she didn’t like her. “I don’t see any reason to be rude, Claudia. I’m merely making copies and…”

Claudia’s retort cut her off. “
I’m merely making copies,
” she repeated in a mocking, childish tone.

Sara stood there, unsure of how to deal with someone who was acting like a toddler. She wasn’t sure why Claudia disliked her so much. She just never seemed to care for her. “Look, I…”

“No!” Claudia shouted. “You look. I fucking hate you. You traipse around this office like your shit doesn’t stink. You think that because you don’t show off the goods that you’re better than the rest of us who know how to use what we’ve got!” Claudia shook her finger in Sara’s face, and then laughing, she turned away. Once she was back in the doorway, she turned once more. “I bet if you finally got someone to fuck you, they would be so ashamed they would want to keep it a secret.” Laughing again, she said, “It would probably be a pity fuck, anyway. You’re so pathetic!”

Sara felt the blood drain from her face, certain she had turned ghost white, while tears had begun to stream out of her eyes when Mitch walked though the copy room on his way to the supply room. He had been whistling and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Sara.

“Sara? What’s wrong?” He went to her and wrapped his arms around her.

She pushed out of his embrace and haphazardly wiped her tears with the back of her hands. “No. Mitch, don’t. I’m fine.” She turned to retrieve her papers from the collation trays and proceeded to staple them all. With her back to him, she remained silent.

Mitch came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Sara, remember rule number two? You’re not supposed to lie to me, honey.”

Sara swung around at the endearment. “Don’t! Or have you forgotten rule number three? You know, the one you were so adamant about.” She quickly picked up her papers and left the room.

* * * *

Mitch stood there stunned. What had happened? Why was she so upset? Had he done something? She seemed so happy this morning when they left for work. They drove in separately, but he had seen her a couple of times that morning and winked at her in passing. She had smiled and blushed each time. She hadn’t seemed unhappy, let alone upset to the point of tears.

“Mitch? What’s the hold up, man?” Larry stood in the doorway.

“Sorry. I got side tracked. I’ll grab the legal pads and pens and be right there.” He left Larry standing there as he strode off and wondered what in the hell could have happened to make Sara so upset. If he wasn’t in a strategy session with two of the partners, as well as Larry, in the war room, he would go to her right now.

An hour later, Mitch’s meeting finally ended. He went directly to Sara’s desk. She wasn’t sitting there. He walked around the desk to grab a pad and pen to leave a note for her. Not oblivious to the fact that she seemed angry with him, he felt the need to include a little white lie.

Sara,

See me immediately. Bring the

Jennings
file. New developments;

must be dealt with ASAP.

 
Mitch

He stalked off to his office. Slamming the door, he sat behind his desk. He looked at the phone messages on his desk, the emails blinking on his screen, and the paperwork scattered on his desk. While he waited, he should take care of some of it. But he couldn’t. What had been wrong with her? She looked so angry and sad. The look on her face had actually scared him. His thoughts were interrupted by the knock at his door.

“Come in.” His anticipation grew into annoyance at the sight of Claudia.

She walked into his office with a cup of coffee in her hand. Without asking for permission, she closed the door and walked toward him with that come-hither look on her face.

“Claudia. What do you need?” His tone was curt, but he didn’t care. He wanted to see Sara. He didn’t have time for Claudia’s mindless flirtations.

Setting the coffee down in front of Mitch and allowing him ample view of her cleavage, she sighed. “Really, Mitch. There’s no reason to be testy. I saw you storm in here, and you looked upset. I just was hoping that I could help relieve some of that tension.” She walked behind him and began massaging his shoulders.

Instantly, Mitch reached his hands back and grabbed hers. “Claudia, I think this is a bit inappropriate.”

He knew Claudia was one to never take rejection lightly and who loved a challenge, but he found her plan of seduction to be disgusting.

Walking around his chair as his head was down, she quickly straddled herself in his lap and wrapped her arms around the back of the chair. “I could make you feel so good, Mitch.”

Mitch looked up at her in shock. “What the hell are you doing?” Then realizing where she was sitting, he reached his hands up to push her away. Hearing a noise, he turned his head, and his heart sunk at the sight standing in his doorway.

Sara opened the door and dropped the Jennings file. She had just spent half of her lunch break crying and the other half cleaning herself up to look presentable again. She intended to apologize to Mitch for being so rude. She had time to think about things and remembered how Mitch told her that she shouldn’t be so insecure. Standing in the doorway to his office though, as he held Claudia in the same way he had held her, she felt her heart break.