“I think we need to go shower now. I have to go into the office for a while.”
She looked at me with a smile and got up from her chair. She walked over and stood behind me, wrapping her arms around me and whispering in my ear. “Taking a shower is a good idea because I’m dirty, and I want to be even dirtier with you in the shower.”
She ran her hot ass up the stairs as I jumped up from my chair and ran up after her. She lifted her top over her head before she reached the bedroom and threw it behind her. Damn, she was hot and I couldn’t wait to get her in the shower. She had it started before I fully stripped out of my clothes. I stepped into the shower and grabbed her h*ps as she wrapped her arms around my neck.
“I’m afraid that I’m going to have to punish you.”
“Why’s that, Mr. Braxton? I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“But you did, Miss Sinclair. You didn’t let me finish my blueberry muffin.”
“I do believe I taste better than your blueberry muffins. So if you’re still hungry, then by all means, help yourself.” She smiled at me.
Not only did she awaken the beast inside, she welcomed it, and I was more than happy to do as she wished.
Chapter 4
Rory
I kissed Ian goodbye as he walked out the door and headed to the office. Since he came to Paris, we spent every waking moment together, and it felt strange that he left, even if it was only for a while. Tomorrow was visiting day over at Hudson Rock and I couldn’t wait to see Stephen. We Skyped every Thursday when I was in Paris, but I still missed him and I couldn’t wait to hug him.
I walked over to the piano and ran my finger along the top. I sat down, positioned my fingers on the keys, and played some Chopin. I lost myself in the melody, but this time, I didn’t need to be transported to another reality. The reality I was in was perfect, and I was happy. As Mandy walked into the room with a smile on her face, I stopped playing and gave her a hug.
“Rory, I’m so happy you’re back. It was awful while you were gone. Mr. Braxton was miserable and I was so afraid I wouldn’t ever see you again,” she said as she hugged me tightly.
“I missed you, Mandy, and I’m here to stay.” I smiled.
“I was so worried that you weren’t going to take Mr. Braxton back. He knew I missed you because he came up to me the day he left for Paris and he told me not to worry because he was going to bring you home.”
“And he did. How were your holidays?” I asked.
“They were good, thank you.”
“How’s your daughter?”
“She’s really good. Just between us, Mr. Braxton gave me a raise as a Christmas gift. He said that I do a really good job and I deserved it.”
My heart melted at the thought of Ian doing that for Mandy. He was finally opening up and becoming the person he was meant to be before his mom left him.
“That’s wonderful, Mandy. I’m so happy for you. Now, when am I going to get to meet that daughter of yours?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I don’t think Mr. Braxton would want me to bring her here. He’s not fond of children.”
I was stunned to hear Mandy say that. Ian and I had never talked about kids in general, so I guess I wasn’t aware of his feelings. My mind went back to that day when Connor and Ellery were here and he was holding Julia. He looked very uncomfortable and, when he saw me, he handed her to me right away.
“Don’t worry about Ian. I can handle him. I really would love to meet your daughter. What’s her name?”
Mandy looked at me and smiled. “Her name is Molly.”
“Molly is a pretty name.”
“Thank you, Rory. I better get back to work,” she said as she turned and walked away.
I headed upstairs to move some of my things from my room to Ian’s. As I reached the top of the stairs, I started down the hall and stopped and stared at the door to “the room.” I put my hand on the doorknob and, surprisingly, it turned. I slowly pushed the door open and gasped when I saw the inside. The walls were no longer gray. They were a light yellow with white crown molding. There was a queen-sized bed with a beautiful duvet cover across it. A white-washed dresser sat on the wall where the hooks used to be and a beautiful matching armoire sat quaintly in the corner. I was in shock and had to look around and be sure this was the same room I had seen not too long ago.
“Do you like it?” Ian’s voice said from behind.
I jumped and placed my hand over my heart. “Ian, you scared me.”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he said as he clasped my shoulders.
“Why are you home already?” I asked.
“Don’t you want me here?”
“Of course I do. I just thought you’d be gone longer.”
“I grabbed what I needed to and I left. Truth be told, I missed you, and I can do some work from home.”
“Aw, baby,” I said as I turned around and hugged him. “I missed you too.”
“Answer my question. Do you like it?”
“Yes. The room looks great. But why?” I asked as I looked up at him and placed my hand on his cheek.
“I wanted it gone. The memories, what it represented; everything. The room was an outlet for me; a way to release the pain I felt inside. The women I brought here were used to this kind of sex. But, you.” He smiled softly. “You were different. I had no desire to do any of those things to you or with you. You were so innocent, and all I could imagine whenever I looked at you was making love to you as passionately as I could.”
“Oh, Ian,” I whispered as I softly stroked his cheek.
He leaned in and kissed my lips and then turned around and shut the door.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
He didn’t have to say anything; his smile said it all. “I want to make love to you in this room right now. I want to create a new memory in here and I want to do it with you.”
“I would love that.” I smiled as my fingers deftly lifted his shirt over his head.
After we made love, Ian had to do some work in his study, so I put on my workout clothes and headed downstairs to the gym. The first thing I did was run on the treadmill for a while before switching over to the punching bag. Now that everything was settled and perfect with Ian, my mind wouldn’t stop wondering about what my Aunt Nancy said about my dad. He left my mom when he found out she was pregnant and abandoned his children. Desperation was settling in, and I wondered if my life would’ve been different if he’d stuck around. I felt an overwhelming need to confront him because I was pissed and hurt by a man I’d never even met. I stepped off the treadmill, wrapped my hands, put on the gloves, and started jabbing at the bag. Jab. Jab. Punch. Punch. The more I thought about him, the harder I punched. I bet he didn’t even know he had twin children. The thought consumed me as I continued to punch. The sweat was dripping from my forehead with each punch and kick I made.