Total pages in book: 21
Estimated words: 19525 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 98(@200wpm)___ 78(@250wpm)___ 65(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 19525 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 98(@200wpm)___ 78(@250wpm)___ 65(@300wpm)
It starts with spicy albacore sushi rolls that are delicate and incredible and better than any sushi I’ve ever had. Three small rolls just before the black cod and lamb meatballs are brought out. I’ve never had either, so Cane and I share. Again, they’re both so good I can hardly believe we’re eating at home.
“Mike, my chef, used to cook at Ivy and Green, a two-star Michelin restaurant,” Cane tells me as our plates are taken back to the kitchen. “I poached him with a better salary and much better hours.”
“I’ve never had a better meal in my life,” I say. “Except maybe Chic-Fil-A.”
Cane laughs. “Yeah, those waffle fries are good.”
When the cheesecake is brought out, Cane pulls his chair up beside mine and puts a hand on my thigh as we eat.
“You know what?” I moan after my first bite. “This is even better than Cheesecake Factory.”
“Wow, that’s high praise,” Cane chuckles. “I’ll have to tell Mike.”
“Yeah, make sure that gets back to him,” I giggle, leaning my head on his shoulder. I close my eyes and feel his body rise and fall with his breath, feel the warmth radiating off his skin, inhale his scent and embed it deep within my lungs.
I’ve never felt safer in my life.
“Why?” I ask.
“Why what?”
“Why did you wait so long?”
Cane’s body tightens. It’s barely noticeable, but I feel it. I look up and see him looking down at me, a hint of regret in his eyes.
“I wanted to talk to you, angel,” he says. “Ever since the first day I saw you. But the truth is…I was afraid.”
“Afraid? Of me?” It almost doesn’t seem possible.
“Yes.” He nods.
I raise a clenched fist and make my best tough-gal face. “’Cause you knew I could beat you up?”
Cane chuckles and nods. “Precisely.” His eyes momentarily break from mine. He looks down and away as if searching inwards. “You have to understand, Mari, for most of my adult life, women have always wanted something from me. Whether it’s money or connections, they see me as a ticket to an easy life. I was afraid that—”
“I’d be just like one of those women?”
His eyes return to mine. “Yes.” I see the sadness there, the pain from an old wound. “My ex, Gina…I thought she loved me, but then I found out she was embezzling money from me. We split up, and I haven’t dated since. That was years ago.”
I quickly take his hand in mine. This is a vital moment for us. I need him to understand that he has nothing to worry about—that I’m not like those other women. The thought of him waking up day after day with me by his side and a single shred of doubt in his mind is too much to bear.
“I’ll sign a prenup!” I blurt out. “An NDA, a contract, I’ll let you put me on an allowance, I’ll live outside in the doghouse, I don’t care!”
“Mari!” Cane laughs. “It’s okay. I don’t have that fear with you.”
“Not at all?”
His eyes look back at me, so soft, so caring. He shakes his head and brushes my cheek with his thumb.
“Not at all, angel. I trust you more than I trust myself.”
7
Mari
Cane wakes me up the next morning by running his strong hand up the back of my thigh.
It takes me a half second to realize I’m not in my bed back home anymore, but then I roll over and open my eyes to his chiseled face and remind myself, This is your home now.
“Morning, sunshine.” Somehow, Cane doesn’t look like he just woke up; he looks like he just stepped off a catwalk. I, on the other hand, can tell my hair is a bee’s nest, and I desperately need to brush my teeth.
“How do you look so handsome already?” I ask. “When I look like I just got run over by a truck?”
“I’ve been up for an hour,” Cane laughs. “Business. And you look like a goddess. Don’t kid yourself.”
“Stop,” I giggle. I try to get up, but Cane pushes me back down with one hand as he climbs into bed and tugs down his sweatpants to reveal a full hard-on. My eyes go wide. I still can’t get over the size, the girth, the way the veins run up and down the shaft like a muscle after a workout. “Oh my God. How did that fit in me?”
“Perfectly,” he answers. “But I’ve had morning wood for the last hour, angel, and now I’m going to teach you how to take care of it with your mouth.”
“Morning wood?”
“You really are a virgin.” Cane smiles. “Morning wood is what we guys wake up with in the morning.”
“Every morning?” I ask as he moves closer, his cock barely an inch from my lips.
“Well, those of us with proper testosterone levels.” He grins. “And having you and your perfect naked body in my bed doesn’t hurt either.”