One Last Time Page 3

  “Your place is absolutely gorgeous,” I told him with a huge grin.

  “Thanks. I’m glad you like it. Would you like another glass of wine?” he asked.

  “Sure,” I replied as I plopped down on his bed.

  He poured glasses for both of us and came over and sat next to me. “Do you want some music to listen to?”

  “Sure.”

  “What kind of music do you like?” he asked.

  “Oh, I don’t know. I like R&B,” I said. It seemed so strange that I was in the penthouse of a guy I’d just met. We barely knew each other, to the point I had to tell him what kind of music I liked. It was too weird.

  Picking up a black remote control, he pressed a button and the lights in the room immediately dimmed. He fiddled again with the remote, and slow rhythm and blues began to play.

  As I sipped my wine, I looked around in awe, taking in my surroundings and losing myself in the moment.

  “You really are a beautiful, intriguing woman, Emma,” Declan said, looking deeply into my eyes.

  I wasn’t sure if he was just saying what he thought I wanted to hear, but I was totally caught up in it all. I took his glass and mine and set them down on the nightstand beside the bed and pulled him closer to me. Our lips touched again and it was like a thousand bolts of electricity shot through my body.

  Completely enthralled by his energy and the romantic vibe between us, I lost myself in his kiss. He wrapped his arms around me and we fell back onto the bed. I let myself thoroughly succumb to his touch and his kiss and he climbed on top of me, running his hands up and down my body.

  “Oh, Emma, I want you,” he mumbled softly between kisses.

  “I want you, too,” I said breathily, pressing my lips back against his.

  He reached back and slid the zipper of my dress down. I unbuttoned his silk shirt and pulled it off his shoulders. As we undressed one another, we kissed. Our tongues intertwined as our mouths muffled out moans of passion and desire for each other.

  He slid my dress down over my shoulders and past my hips and I unbuttoned his pants and slid them down his legs. His body was amazing and sexy as hell. I ran my hands over his muscular, toned upper body and eight-pack abs. He sighed at the feel of my hands against his skin and I moaned as he trailed kisses from my mouth, down my neck until his lips found my breasts.

  A soft groan escaped my lips as his tongue traced circles around my pert, erect nipples and I ran my fingers through his thick dark hair as his hand traveled down my belly and slid into my satin panties. I arched my back as I felt his fingertips against my nub, applying just the right amount of pressure to set my entire body on fire.

  The music continued to play in the background as he trailed more kisses down to my navel and then slid my panties down over my hips. His mouth found my center, causing cry after cry of pleasure to escape my lips. It had been so long since a man had touched me so intimately, and Declan’s technique was second-to-none.

  I threw my head back and gripped the sheets as he pushed my legs back and used his tongue to bring me closer and closer to an intense, powerful orgasm.

  “Oh, Declan!” I cried out as his fingers slid deeper into me, pressing against my walls while his tongue simultaneously flicked against my clit.

  “Mmm, you taste incredible,” he said softly against my folds.

  I was just about to reach my peak when he suddenly stopped. Panting hard, I gasped as I lifted my head to look downward to see what he was doing. He had a wrapped condom in his hand and he quickly bit it open with his teeth. I was glad that at least one of us had a clear enough head to think about safe sex, because I was so far gone that it hadn’t even crossed my mind that I hadn’t been on birth control since my ex and I had broken up.

  He pulled the condom over his length. I watched, realizing how long and thick his manhood was. I wondered if I was going to be able to take it all, especially since it had been such a long time since I’d had sex.

  “Emma, you’re so wet for me,” he whispered in my ear as he spread my thighs open and pressed his erection against my slit.

  He gripped my breast with one hand and used his other hand to guide himself to my opening. I let out another gasp as I felt him slide into me, slowly at first, pushing deeper inside of me, little by little, until he couldn’t go any farther. He groaned in my ear as he filled me with his length, and it turned me on to no end.

  “Emma, you feel incredible,” he whispered against my neck.

  All I could do was moan unintelligibly at the amount of sheer pleasure he was giving me.

  He started thrusting into me, speeding up his rhythm, and then slowing it down, cupping my ass. I cried out in delight as he plunged into me over and over again, lifting my hips and forcing himself even deeper. I called out his name as I arched my back and covered his neck in kisses.

  My whole body began to tremble uncontrollably as he brought me right up to my peak and then sent me over the edge. I cried out loudly as I climaxed hard and fierce. I wrapped my legs around his waist as my orgasm completely took hold of me and he squeezed me tightly in his arms, thrusting deeper into me and making me scream with pleasure.

  As my climax finally started to wane, my body relaxed and I sighed deeply. Declan looked down at me with an expression of pride on his handsome face.

  We made love for at least another hour and in nearly every position imaginable before he was finally ready to explode. He came inside me, filling the condom with his essence as he gripped my ass from behind and groaned loudly, calling my name over and over. It was such a turn-on that I climaxed yet again, for the third time that night. His body tensed up for a moment and then he finally relaxed and collapsed on top of me, breathing a sigh of satisfaction.

  * * * * *

  The rays of the morning sun hit my cheeks and caused me to awaken from my deep, comfortable slumber. I opened my eyes and looked around, squinting slightly from the brightness of the sun peeking through the open blinds of Declan’s bedroom window.

  I sat up, holding the covers to my chest as I realized that Declan was no longer in bed beside me. That’s when it hit me. I’d stayed overnight with a man I’d only met hours ago. Shit, that wasn’t like me. As I stood up and began to dress, I noticed a piece of paper sitting on the nightstand beside the bed. Picking it up, I saw that it was addressed to me.

  Emma,

  I’m sorry I had to run to the office early this morning but I didn’t want to wake you. If you happen to wake up while I’m gone, I wanted you to know that I’ll be back as soon as I can!

  Declan

  Typical. I slid my panties up over my hips.

  This situation reminded me so much of my ex that it almost made me sick to my stomach. The main reason that he and I had broken up was because he could never put me before his job. A part of me felt like I shouldn’t even make a big deal out of things, though, because it wasn’t like Declan and I were actually together or anything. It had just been a one-night fling, really. A totally amazing one-night fling, but a fling nonetheless.

  I quickly finished dressing, gathered my things, and headed out the door.

  As I was making my way out of the building, I noticed an older portly gentleman dressed in a red bellhop outfit with gold trim standing just outside.

  “Good morning, madam,” the bellhop said to me with a genuine-looking smile.

  “Um, good morning,” I replied nervously.

  “I’m George. George Worthington, the building bellhop. Can I help you to your vehicle, ma’am?” he asked kindly.

  “Oh…oh, no, I uh, I didn’t drive here,” I replied, suddenly realizing that I didn’t have a way back to my vehicle, which was parked all the way back in the Lovehouse restaurant parking lot.

  Just then, Declan came walking up.

  Perfect timing.

  “Hey, Emma. Did you get my note?” he asked as a sweet smile spread across his prince-like face.

  “Uh, yeah, I did,” I said, reaching up to scratch my head awkwardly.<
br />
  “Well, where’re you headed off to so fast?” he asked.

  “I, um, kind of got a thing? And I have to go home and get ready for it,” I replied uneasily.

  “Oh, okay, well, I guess I’ll see you later, then,” he said amiably, leaning in to kiss me on the cheek. “George, please have my driver take her back to her car in one of the limos.”

  “Right away, sir,” George replied.

  Chapter 5

  Declan

  As much as I hated having to go into the office on Saturdays, this was one of those Saturdays where I had to make a quick appearance and pick up some of the paperwork I’d forgotten to grab earlier that morning.

  As I was making my way down the long hallway toward my office, my assistant came out of one of the other offices.

  “Hey, tiger!” she said with an openly flirtatious grin.

  “Oh. Hello, Vivian,” I said, attempting to be friendly. I hadn’t expected to see the bubbly, big-breasted blonde at the office so early on a Saturday morning. “What are you doing here on a weekend morning?”

  “Oh, I just came in to do a favor for Charles. He asked me to update some of the files in his computer and he needed it all done by Monday, so, here I am.” She came right up to me and reached out to straighten my tie.

  “What are you doing?” I asked, looking at her uneasily.

  “There,” she said with a satisfied smile. “That’s better.” She ran her hand down my tie as she looked at me intently with those deep blue eyes of hers.

  She was dressed in a long, form-fitting yellow dress and a pair of matching stiletto sandals that made her appear to be at least four inches taller than she actually was. Her breasts were pressed together in a push-up bra and the top of her sundress dipped down into a V-shape, exposing the top half of both her tits. The dress looked like it belonged in a dance club rather than a business office, but that was just how Vivian was.

  She was actually very good at her job, which was why my father let her get away with her racy outfits and flirtatious behavior. Of course, I’d never seen her flirt with anyone else in the office other than me. She was always lively and vivacious with everyone who worked in the building, but she seemed a little bit overly playful when it came to her interactions with me.

  “Looking forward to that celebratory drink next week!” she said with a wink as she turned around and sashayed down the hall.

  I cleared my throat and continued toward my office. The paperwork I needed was sitting in a neat little stack on my desk. I snatched it up and headed for the copy room. Just my luck, Vivian was already in there running off copies of a flyer.

  “Hey, are you following me, big guy?” she asked teasingly, turning toward me with a coy grin on her face.

  “Not at all, Vivian,” I replied, straightening the papers in my hands.

  “Bummer,” she said, playfully poking out her bottom lip.

  “I just need to get these copies made so I can take them to the event this afternoon,” I explained.

  “Oh? You’re going to that thing downtown?”

  “Yep. That prospective client I told you about is supposed to be there,” I said.

  “Oh, really? Sounds interesting,” she replied as she picked up the copies she’d made. As she moved toward the door, she stopped directly in front of me and gazed up into my eyes.

  “Are you…hungover?” she suddenly asked. “You look tired.”

  “Not really. Just had a late night, that’s all,” I replied.

  “Oh, really? That account rep keep you out late?” she inquired, cocking her head to the side.

  “Uh, no, actually. I met someone and spent the evening with her,” I said proudly. It had been one of the best nights of my life, in fact, but I didn’t say that to Vivian.

  She looked disappointed by my statement. She darted her eyes away for a second and then her smile immediately returned.

  “How nice for you, then,” she said sweetly as she abruptly turned on her heels and continued on her way.

  * * * * *

  The large gymnasium at the inner-city community center was crowded with children and adults alike. Everyone seemed excited and in good spirits. As I made my way up to the podium to speak, I saw a slender brunette helping some of the other volunteers set up tables, and I recognized Emma immediately. I went over to her and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned around and her eyes widened in surprise.

  “Hey, are you stalking me or something?” she asked teasingly.

  “Or something,” I teased back.

  Just then, one of my assistants, a young guy named Jonathan Mathers, called out to me,

  “Mr. Erikson! I have something you need to see!”

  “Excuse me for a moment,” I said to Emma as I went over to see what was going on.

  My prospective client was supposed to have been at the event half an hour ago as the surprise guest speaker, but he still hadn’t arrived and I hadn’t heard from him, either.

  “Sir, your guest speaker’s rep just called and said that a personal matter came up and he won’t be able to make it.”

  “Shit,” I cursed under my breath. “Okay, I’ll just say an apology on his behalf.”

  I went up to the podium in the front of the gym and everyone quieted down. I cleared my throat before beginning to speak.

  “Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you all for coming out today. As you know, Erikson, Inc. is delighted to be able to fund this sports equipment program for our inner-city schools. Unfortunately, our surprise guest speaker is unable to make it today, but he wanted me to apologize on his behalf.” Mutters and sounds of disappoint filled the gymnasium. “However, we still have an exciting afternoon planned for you, with lots of fun activities, free food, and free t-shirts. So let’s get this party started, everyone!”

  This time, a roar of applause rang out around the large gym and I smiled, took a bow, and left the podium.

  Chapter 6

  Emma

  I was still reeling when I came home from the school event. I’d had no idea that I was going to run into Declan there, and he’d been just as surprised to see me. I had accepted the fact that he and I had shared a lovely evening together and had amazing sex, but I had been pretty certain that it would only be a one-night thing.

  I needed to talk to Chloe about the situation. She was much more experienced in these types of things than I was, and I was sure she could offer me some advice.

  “Hey, girl, what’s up?” she said, answering my video call.

  “What are you up to?” I asked, looking down at her picture on the screen. She had her healthy red locks pulled back away from her face and her eyes were all done up with a dark liner.

  “I’m getting ready to go have a drink at the Alley Alehouse,” she boasted happily.

  “Really? With who?” I asked.

  “My new friend, Knot,” she said with a grin.

  “Knot? Who the hell is Knot?” I asked, turning my nose up at the weird-sounding name.

  “Knot yo’ business,” she exclaimed and burst into a fit of giggles.

  “Oh, you are so funny,” I said with a chuckle.

  “I’m just messing with you. I’m going out with this guy I met at the coffee shop the other day. Remember Kyle?”

  “Oh, yeah. Well, I wanted to finish telling you about that guy I met last night,” I reminded her.

  “Oh, yeah! Martin, right?”

  “What? Hell no! Your little friend Martin Langley never even bothered to show up!”

  “Are you serious? What a fucking asshole,” she said.

  “Right?” I agreed.

  “He’s got some nerve, after all I went through to get your hair looking just right and after trying on three—no four outfits…. And then you were waiting for him? I’m so sorry. Tell me you didn’t wait very long. He’s gonna hear it when I tell my brother about—”

  I cut her off in mid-rant. “No, no, no! No need to tell your brother anything, really,” I said. “I actually met someon
e else instead.”

  “Ooh, look at that grin! You got laid, didn’t you?” she said, cackling.

  “Shut up,” I said with a giggle.

  “You did, didn’t you!” she replied, grinning from ear to ear. “Oh, my God! Who is this mystery man?”

  I plopped down onto my couch, smiling as the memory of the passionate night I’d shared with Declan sprang back up into my mind.

  “Well, his name is Declan Erikson, and he’s really hot and really rich.” I added extra emphasis on the word rich.

  “Really? Hot damn! You found one of those wealthy playboy fuck toys!” she teased.

  “Oh, God, shut up, please. He is not a fuck toy.”

  “Then what is he? Your new boyfriend?”

  “Well, no, he’s…” I really couldn’t explain what I thought he was as my brain tried to find the right words.

  “Well?” she asked impatiently. “What the hell is he, then?”

  “Umm, I guess maybe it was just a one-night thing, maybe,” I said hesitantly.

  “Hey, nothing wrong with that. I’m so proud of you! You finally got out there and did something spontaneous!” she shouted cheerily. “Welcome to life in the fast lane, girlfriend!”

  “Well, at least I thought it was just a one-night thing. But then, he showed up at the school event earlier today,” I explained.

  “He did?” she asked, her eyes widening again.

  “Yeah. His company is donating sports equipment to all of the elementary schools in the county.”

  “Oh wow! He sounds like a nice rich guy!” she exclaimed.

  “Right? And he came right up to me in front of everyone, you know? Like he wanted to talk to me about something. But then, he had to go up and speak to the crowd and stuff, and I didn’t see him again after that,” I explained.

  “Well, has he called you?” she asked inquisitively.

  “Well… I never actually gave him my number,” I admitted, scrunching my face up.

  “You can’t be serious!” she said, flashing me a what the fuck is wrong with you look.

  “I just forgot, I guess. And it’s not like he asked or anything,” I said quietly, unable to look her directly in the face.