21. Sally

I’m absorbed in the moment, enfolded in Drakar’s arms. We move together sensuously, guided by the natural rhythms that exist between us, rather than the melodies bouncing from inside the club. The rest of the world has floated away, and the only thing in my scope is this orc. He is the only thing that exists for me.

For years, I’ve struggled to get by, to make ends meet. Then for months I was overwhelmed by stress and depression, drowning in bills and isolation after my dad’s diagnosis. Now for the past month I’ve been exhausted by constantly fighting or denying my attraction to this orc, and I simply don’t want to resist anymore.

Stepping even closer into his space, I glide my hands up his torso, letting my fingertips travel along every groove and dip of muscle his linen button-down disguises. A vein seems to pulse in his neck, and a matching thrill pulses through me. I should be intimidated, but instead I am excited that I can get a reaction out of him. I hope that he can see the unmasked want I’m no longer hiding.

He seems to press even closer, leaving no space between us. There is no disguising the evidence of my affect on him as I feel a bulging pressure wedge between my thighs. “I have had an incredible time with you here,” he growls, tilting his face closer to mine. “I don’t think today could be any more perfect.”

“I could think of a few ways,” I quip, heatedly and invitingly as my hands rest at his collarbone. He exhales at my response, and I can feel my dress tighten in his clenching fists at my tailbone. Already I imagine him ripping said dress away from my body back at the room, and absently I wonder how quickly I can make that happen.

Most of the time I am a cheerful but thoughtful kind of person, someone who hopes for the best but plans for the worst. Who is this uninhibited, spontaneous vixen that has taken my place, set on seducing my billionaire husband?

“If you keep going on like that, I may just have to kiss you again.” The look he gives me is a mix of equal parts warning and desire, challenge and temptation, all wrapped up in one.

“Promises, promises,” I mutter, dragging his lips down to mine, emboldened by wine. This kiss is a heady, turbulent thing, of lips reconnecting and electric touches. There is no surprise this time, only the mutual understanding of chemistry that exists between two people and the desire to explore that.

Wrapped in our embrace, I’m so caught up in the promise of us that I barely register the winds that have whipped up around us. The taste of ozone hums in the air along his mouth, and I have just enough time to notice before the first raindrop splatters lightly across my cheek.

The refreshingly cool drop has me blinking momentarily, startling me enough to pull from Drakar’s touch. Then the heavens open up.

It’s the best way to describe a sudden storm in the tropics. Rain suddenly empties from the sky in great sheets, while rolling clouds thunder against one another, sparking errant lightning in the distance. It sends the patrons hurtling into the night, Drakar and myself included.

Our resort is luxury in action, with the route from the public venues to the private hotel proper easily managed by a few convenient pathways. My husband pulls me along one of these, the grip of his hand warm and firm, while our shoes clack on the slick cobblestones, stray bits of sand clumping in our wake.

Within a few minutes it feels like the world is drenched, with flowers and shrubbery now glistening in the moonlight. The thunder still rages above, but I can barely hear it over the roar of my heartbeat. He wastes no time getting us under some cover, then his lips are pressed over mine once more.

My dress is soaked through and clings to my curves, while the lines of abdominal muscles I was tracing before are visible through the shirt now plastered to him. The rain has left moistened trails along our skin, making us slip and slide as we entwine ourselves once more.

He pulls back only to adjust his grip, and our eyes lock under the lightning. Gently, he caresses his fingers along the lines of my face, wiping rain into my skin. My face is tilted up towards his, cradled by his other hand while he gazes at me with simmering lust.

“You have no idea how often I’ve thought about doing that lately,” he confesses. His words don’t rise above the rain pelting the jungle, but something deep in my core clenches and aches at his words.

“Why didn’t you?” I whisper back.

Drakar leaves suckling kisses along neck, opting now to lick the rain off my body. He’s prolonging his answer, but his tongue feels so good that I find I don’t mind. This moment feels like the culmination of everything that has passed between us, and the start of something important.

Otherwise, this feels like bliss. We’re moving along and trading kisses like banter, with lips and tongues finding new ways to make each other moan. Scents of citrus and the surrounding flora combine enticingly with Drakar’s unique aroma, making me feel light-headed as he squeezes me closer.

“God, you feel so good. I knew you would. I dreamed about it.” He presses me against a leaning palm tree, near where the dense foliage starts to blend with the hotel canopy. More kisses along my breastbone threaten to shatter me, with equal parts lust and frustration.

“Why didn’t you say something?” I groan now as I feel his large teeth leave love bruises over my covered breasts. I know we’re having a conversation somewhere in my mind, but the other things he’s doing with his mouth are more pressing at the moment.

One of his hands tugs impatiently in my hair, sending delightful tingles along my scalp, while his other hand has traveled downward to fondle my backside. When he grips me fiercely, I have no choice but to arch into him. I want so much more of this, with less clothes and a bed that’s only a short distance away. Then we can talk after, make love some more, then plan our future.

“I had to hold back,” he comments as he moves back to taste my jawline. “It was inappropriate, and I-I didn’t want to force myself on you.” Then there are more kisses along my lips, before he’s moving again.

I’m inclined to giggle, witnessing my articulate and unflappable CEO lose his composure, but his touch feels like it’s stoking an ardent fire inside me. Even the trickle of the passing storm does nothing to cool the fever of his kiss. “Thank you for thinking of me, with everything, and for all of this.”

Immediately, I know it’s the wrong thing to say. Drakar halts abruptly against the slope of my neck, with everything stalling out. He gives a harsh exhale, then he’s pulling back and moving further away from me as he runs frustrated hands through his cropped locks.

“No, Sally, it’s not what you think.” He’s frowning now, and glaring diplomatically at a spot past my head. “We shouldn’t be doing this- I-I shouldn’t have brought you here like this, I’m sorry.”

There is a fraction of a space and time as the distance between us grows, where I want to chase after him and pull him back to me, yet I refrain. I realize the rain has already abated, the storm dying as swiftly as it flared up, with nothing but empty breezes to stroke my skin.

The actuality of his words slam into me like a brick, almost knocking me over. Where moments ago I felt as if I was soaring, now I’m plummeting. His apology rings hollowly through my ears, the rejection a gravity spiral I find myself falling into.

A combination of the events of the day, wine, and hormones threaten to overtake me as I struggle to regain my emotional footing. That’s right. With everything going on, I had forgotten that this is just a business arrangement for him. I’m a contractual worker, little better than a maid.

The thought almost turns my stomach, but a palm tree’s rough grip supports me, even as I waver on my feet. Drakar’s expression starts to morph into one of concern, but as he moves forward to help me, I halt him with a gesture. The last thing I need right now is the pitying assistance of a man who only wants to be my husband on paper.

How could I have wanted this? He holds himself back as I stand, another apology on his lips, but I silence that also. “Well, I suppose there’s nothing further to say or do on the matter.”

“Sally-”

“The contract still stands, of course. In full effect, despite this little lapse, as we’ll call it.” I can barely get the words out, and I can feel myself trembling, but whether it’s from hurt or anger, I can’t say. “Thank you for seeing me back to the hotel Mr. Tvojan, but I can see myself up to the room from here.”

“Sally, we should talk,” he pleads.

“No, I think we really should say goodbye here. You have a good night, Drakar, and I’ll see you in the morning. Don’t… don’t follow me.”

With that, I turn and head to the room, uncaring of the direction he decides to take. I leave the scene with my dignity intact, even if my heart lies shattered on the jungle floor.