Chapter 15 - Tia

All of this is so magical. I don't know if it's this place, or what is going on with me, but I am really struggling to keep my thoughts under control today.

Yefim is just—he's so gorgeous, and he's being such a gentleman. He's going out of his way to make sure I'm enjoying myself and he keeps asking me if I need anything else. Sometimes he doesn't even ask, he just preemptively brings me what I need. And, of course, I have to chuckle when he makes sure I keep drinking water in between the wine tasting sessions. It's something a real boyfriend would do. It takes me by surprise that he even considers it.

I am honestly having the most amazing time.

This place is too beautiful for words. It's lush and green and luxurious.

We are standing downstairs in the wine cellar. He brought me down here to show me how the wine is made, but when he took his jacket off and wrapped it around my shoulders, then pulled me tight against his side…honestly, I forgot all about the wine, and now I can smell his cologne and I can feel him against me and all I am thinking is that I want him to kiss me again.

He pulls me around to face him. My hands are on his chest and his arms are wrapped around me.

He leans down and kisses me. His lips against mine, moving slowly, seductively, send waves of electricity bolting trough my body like a summer storm threatening to burn through the sky.

His kiss makes me feel alive. It fills me with something I can't explain. The way he looks at me makes me feel beautiful, but the way he kisses me—it makes me feel as though he has been waiting for me his entire life, and now that he's found me, he will never let me go.

It's a beautiful feeling.

And a terrifying one.

Because I'm letting myself get carried away here. I am letting this place and this moment sweep me off my feet, and I if I am not careful, I am going to fall for Yefim and be heartbroken when this whole arrangement is over.

Our kiss is interrupted, and I don't know whether to be disappointed or relieved.

I follow Yefim back up the stone staircase, into the late afternoon sun.

"They've set up dinner on the upper deck, where we can have privacy." Yefim says, gesturing to the wooden area above us. "Are you hungry now? The sun will be setting soon, and it will be an incredible view from up there."

"I'm actually really hungry," I smile, trying to force my heart to calm down, to stop beating so fast, to stop falling so hard for this man. I can't fall for him, dammit. I can't be that girl who does stupid things. I have to focus on my career and getting out of debt. And once I'm out of debt and he has whatever it is he needs from this marriage, he's going to walk away, and we'll get divorce, and he'll go date some gorgeous girl like Zoey.

I bite my lower lip.

"You know I love it when you bite your lip, but it also means something is bothering you. What's going on?" Yefim asks, leading me towards the stairs.

"Nothing, just got lost in thought for a moment. I really am hungry," I chuckle.

"Oh dear, I've never seen you hangry. Do you get grumpy?"

"Yes. I can be a bit scary for sure," I giggle.

"I'd like to see you try and be scary, little girl." His voice drops deeper and seems to be filled with suggestion. Between my legs a certain heated need grows more intense.

I shake my head, walking up the stairs ahead of him.

The deck is completely clear of everything except for our one table. It's set up near the edge and surrounded by fairy lights, which are already sparkling in the late afternoon sun. I can't even imagine how beautiful they are going to look when the sun sinks beneath the horizon.

"Yefim, does it always look like this?" I walk towards our table.

On the table are gorgeous crystal wine glasses, white and red roses, porcelain dinnerware, and candles flickering in the soft breeze.

"No, usually this deck is filled with tables. I had them clear them away to create something special for us."

I stand near the table and hear the sound of water.

"Is there a fountain or a pond?"

"Look over there, in the corner."

I turn around and can't believe I didn't notice it before. I was so focused on how beautifully set up the table was. My eyes wander over a massive stone wall, richly green with hanging vines, creepers, and moss, looking like a natural rock wall. It has water flowing down it, over the edge of the balcony, into a stream below that disappears into the vineyards.

I stare at it in disbelief. "It's—it's perfect," I say, with my jaw practically on the floor.

"I designed it myself. It reminded me of one of my favorite places back home. The Gedmish Waterfalls were close to where I lived, and I used to hike there some weekends. When the rain fell, it was the most spectacular thing to witness. The way the plants grew along the rock face, and the sun pierced through the spray of water. I wish you could have seen it. Perhaps one day I will take you there."

I stare at him in wonder at how passionately he is speaking about this place. He makes me want to go there. He makes me want to see it.

Yefim pulls my chair out for me and I sit down at our dinner table.

The chef brings out our first course of salmon carpaccio, drizzled with lemongrass oil and chives. It is divine. It gets paired with a glass of white wine, perfectly complementing the dish.

When our main course is served, the sun has pierced the sky with bright orange and pink streaks.

We eat the wild game meat on a bed of baby potatoes in garlic butter and wild rosemary. Yefim shifts his chair around to my side of the table.

"There is no point in sitting with my back to such a beautiful sunset. I'd rather enjoy the moment and the memory with you," he says as he settles down with his thigh resting against mine, and that intense heat builds between my legs again as I try desperately to keep myself under control.

All through the main course I can barely focus on the food.

All I can think about the heat of his body against mine.

When dessert is served, the chef asks if we need anything else.

"No, thank you, you can go home. I really appreciate you coming in just for this." Yefim smiles warmly and the chef nods, grateful.

Coffee and chocolate cake for dessert. The perfect ending to a perfect dinner.

Yefim leans back in his chair, stretching his arm around my back. I become rigid and stiff, not sure what to do with myself because I'm very quickly losing control of my body, and all I want to do, all I can thinking of, is throwing myself at this man and kissing the living daylights out of him.

"Is everything alright? You're biting your lip again."

"I'm just going to—um—I'm going down to the ladies' quickly. I won't be long." I stand up quickly and practically run for the door, because if I turn around and look at him, at how freaking gorgeous he is, I am going to run straight back to him and swing my legs over his lap and—

Just go downstairs for a moment, take a breath. Take a moment. Pull yourself together.

Downstairs the staff is busy packing up for the day, and I feel like I'm in the way, so I head into the cellar. It's cool and quiet.

I stand in the middle of the cave-like room and take a slow breath.

I'm already in too deep, I think to myself. No matter how much I try to convince myself otherwise, I have totally fallen for Yefim, and I'm going to have my heart broken at the end of this.

I bite my lip, overwhelmed, fighting tears.

"Tia?" His voice carries down the stairs and echoes in the room.

"Yefim? I—um—I just—" I don't even know what to say.

"Something is wrong," he says, hurrying down the stairs towards me. "I could see at the table that something was bothering you. Now you are hiding here in the wine cellar. Talk to me."

His eyes are full of concern, but I also don't miss the fact that they wander over my body for the hundredth time today.

Am I mistaken, or does he find my plus-size curves attractive?

Is that just wishful thinking?

I shake my head. "I just got overwhelmed. This place, the food, um…" You.

"There is no need for such a beautiful girl to feel overwhelmed by a beautiful place. You belong in places like this. You deserve to relax and watch gorgeous sunsets." He gently touches my face, his eyes burning with need as they fall onto my lips.

He always looks at me as though I am everything he desires. That's what I see in his expression, even now.

Fuck it.

I don't care if this ends up breaking my heart.

I stand on my tiptoes and grab his face in my hands. I press my mouth against his and kiss him, deep and slow.

I let my tongue dance in his mouth, teasing him, teasing myself even more. His hands are roaming my full body with a sensual touch, brushing down my back, caressing each curve. He grabs my ass and squeezes, letting a low growl rumble from his chest.

"I love your body," he whispers against my lips. "I love every curve, every inch of you."

He lifts me off my feet, wrapping my legs around his waist as he carries me to the side of the wine cellar where they have couches set up around a glass table.

He drops me onto the couch, then kneels down in front of me.

Slowly, his hands drift up my legs, pulling my dress up, pushing my thighs apart. I gasp when his fingers dip inside my pussy.

Then he leans down and pushes his face between my thighs, his mouth locking over my clit as he gently sucks me, then plays his tongue up and down over my most sensitive skin.

My fingers are digging into the couch while he dips his inside me along with his tongue , causing sensations I have never felt before.

He keeps licking and dipping his tongue inside me until my legs start to shake.

Then he looks up at me, smiling, and says, "Not yet."

Yefim stands and pulls his pants open, letting his monstrous cock free. I can't tear my eyes off it.

I open my legs wider, waiting for him, ready to feel him again.

This time is different to how it was in the office. It's not filled with the same urgency, the same heated rush.

This slow, sensual exploration of each other's bodies is more intimate, and when he leans over me and pushes his cock into my pussy, I realize it is far more pleasurable that I could ever have imagined.

Yefim has me pinned against the sofa as he thrusts into me over and over again, sometimes moving slowly, sometimes pushing so deep I feel like he might break me apart with his cock, then moving slow again.

I bury my face against his neck and breathe in the scent of him, a scent that sends shivers through me. One that, even though I don't like to admit it, I have fallen in love with.

Everything about him, I realize, I am falling in love with.

Yefim leans up over me, one hand pressed into the cushion above my head, then wraps the other around my thick waist to arch my back upwards as he slowly starts to increase his momentum.

I can feel his cock growing harder inside me and it's causing my entire body to shake uncontrollably. He's already brought me so close to the edge with his tongue, I don't know how I've managed to last this long, but even as I think that, I know I don't want it to end.

I want to experience this again and again with him.

I cry out and press my hips up against him, letting his cock push deeper into me as my pussy clamps down on him and the heavy, pulsing waves of an orgasm crash through me.

Yefim lets out a deep moan as he explodes inside me, gripping me tighter.

We lie on the couch together for a moment, catching our breath. Last time we were together it felt purely physical, like something that was based on need and nothing else.

This time, I felt him. I saw the way he looked at me. I felt the connection.

It was so much more intimate, so much more mind-blowing because of the connection we made.

A little shiver runs through my body.

"It is cold in here, isn't it," he chuckles, pulling me to my feet. "Let's get you home, into a warm bath perhaps."

"That sounds lovely," I say, leaning against him for a moment, staring in his eyes.

Then he steps away to pull his pants back on and I pull my dress down, unable to hide the stupid grin on my face.

But only a few minutes later we both realize we have an issue.

The cellar door is locked.

The staff has closed up for the night.

"It's okay, we can phone them." I laugh, nervously, as I search around for my phone. "Oh, I left my phone on the table upstairs."

"So did I," Yefim chuckles. He doesn't seem in the least bit phased to be trapped in here with me.

"Can't we bang on the doors?" I ask, shocked.

"There's no night staff. If they've locked up, then the place is empty."

"Until tomorrow?" My eyes are wide with horror.

"Until tomorrow, but don't look so worried. I promise we'll be fine until then."

He grabs my hand and pulls me back down the stairs. "Here, see." He points to a storage closet.

"What is it?" I ask, peeking inside.

"It's all the supplies for the picnics we host."

He starts pulling out blankets and pillows.

"The air-controlled section is on that side of the cellar. If we set up some blankets over here, we can make a bed and get some sleep."

Yefim builds us a little sort of hideaway blanket fort and I smile, watching him work, trying to help where I can, but he seems to be on a mission to create something specific.

When it's done, he takes my hand and pulls me onto the piled-up pillows and blankets and into his arms. My heart flutters wildly as I lie there on his chest in the softly lit room, the orange light glowing like a gentle fire.

"What was your childhood like?" he asks after a long moment of silence.

"In the beginning, it was really nice." I sigh. It's not something I talk about often, but I want to share who I am with Yefim. "My dad left before I could remember. So I don't even know anything about him other than what my mom told me.

"My mom—she was amazing. I know she worked so hard to keep things together for us. She worked two jobs, and still had time to make me feel like I was the center of her world. I loved her to bits. But as I got older, I guess she got older, too, and those years and years of working nonstop and never resting—it all caught up to her. She started drinking. I can still remember the first time I ever saw her drunk. I was so confused. I didn't understand what was going on.

"Anyways, once she started drinking, she never stopped. She lost her jobs—she couldn't get work because she always reeked of alcohol. She started gambling with what little money we had, and once or twice she won, and that was enough to convince her she could win every time. She took loans from some really dark and dangerous people—she lost everything.

"Eventually the alcohol caused her liver to fail, and she died, leaving me with the debts. That's why I had to take all of those jobs, it's why I'm scared of not working hard, in case I lose my way like she did."

I lie quietly, resting in his arms, feeling his chest drift up and down with his breath.

He wraps his arm tighter around me, kissing the top of my head. "Your mom may have messed up at the end, but she still created the most beautiful daughter. Everything you went through in your life turned you into this gorgeous, driven, strong woman that you are today. You should be proud of yourself, Tia. For overcoming that, and for still standing strong. I understand why you work so hard now. I understand why you value your career and your ability to look after yourself. But sometimes, it's okay to accept help from people who care about you."

"I've never really had anyone care about me, not since my mom passed away. And when she did, she wasn't in a state to care about anyone, not even herself."

"Things change. Life changes, new people come along, and you can let them in."

A warm smile touches my lips, the warmth spreading through my chest, into my heart, filling me with something beautiful. Comfort. A feeling of—safety.

I close my eyes and take a soft breath.

As I snuggle against Yefim, we fall asleep together in the wine cellar.