TrentGabe looked at Richie before nodding. “I understand. I graduated at the top of my class. I always believed I would one day inherit the hotel. I wanted to do my best to make it a success.”“Good,” I said, relaxing a little. “You and I will be working closely together over the next week so you can get a feel for how I do things. I’ve got meetings with contractors and designers that have been put on hold for too long already. I have executive control. I will listen to your opinions, but it is my decision that rules. Understand?”I could see his little kid hackles going up. I shot Richie a look. Part of me was hoping he would shoot me down. I didn’t necessarily want to work with him, and I really didn’t want to invest the time into training him. I had better things to do. Better people to spend it with.“I’m not a kid,” he retorted.I raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t say you were.”Not aloud at least.“Look, there are some things that we need to clear up,” Richie started. “Gabe, us hiring
SadeI rushed into the employee break room and grabbed my purse, pulling out my phone. I knew there would be a text from him. He had steady access to his phone and often texted me throughout the day. I checked every break I got. It was something pleasant to look forward to.I was completely bummed I wasn’t going to get to see Trent until at least the following weekend. It was a hard feeling to describe, but my heart felt a little empty. I felt like I was missing a part of me. He wasn’t dead. He was only a couple hundred miles away, but it felt like a couple thousand miles.I sat down at the small table in the breakroom, my phone on the table as I opened up my lunchbox. I took a bite of my sandwich when the door pushed open. One of my colleagues walked in. He was probably my least favorite coworker. There was something about him that just rubbed me wrong.“Hi, Sade,” he said with a smile.“Hi, Cash.”He grabbed a soda from the fridge and sat down at the table. “Whatcha doing?”I looked
SadeI shrugged. “I suppose.”“You mean to tell me his money didn’t influence you to date him?” Holly asked.I grinned. “Did you see what he looked like? Why would I need money to convince me to date him?”She laughed. “True. Very good point.”“I should probably get back to work,” I said, shoving the last of my sandwich in my mouth and washing it down with my soda.“I’ll be back out in a few.”I cleaned up my area and headed back to my workstation. Holly worked at the next station over, and while we occasionally chatted while we were working, we didn’t do it often. We needed to give our work our full attention. Plus, the lab manager frowned on conversations.I couldn’t get the picture of Trent out of my mind. I realized I only had one picture of him on my phone. The next time I saw him, I was going to remedy that. I wanted something to stare at when I went to bed or when I was missing him. Most girls my age were snapping about a million selfies when they were with their friends or boy
TrentI knew I was pushing the envelope a bit, but I had to see her. I checked the time and figured if I left work right then, I could squeeze in a couple of hours with Sade. I would go home, change into my tux, fly over, and be back by nine to make an appearance at the gala I was supposed to be attending.It wasn’t much, but two hours with her was better than nothing at all. I called Richie as I walked out the door. I didn’t want to give him the chance to stop me.“Hey, I’m leaving early,” I said as soon as he picked up.“What?”“I’m cutting out early,” I repeated. “I’ll catch up with you tonight. You can babysit Gabe for the rest of the day. I need a break.”“Are you going where I think you’re going?”I chuckled. “I can neither confirm or deny that statement.”“Don’t you dare call me with some bullshit excuse that you can’t make it back,” he warned.“See you later,” I said and ended the call.Bentley was waiting to drive me home. My tux was already waiting for me. I quickly changed
TrentWe finished our dinner, and I knew the car would be waiting. I didn’t want to go. I got to my feet and downed the last of the beer. She stood up and walked into my waiting arms, her head resting against my chest. I held her close, inhaling the scent of her shampoo.“I don’t want to go.”“I don’t want you to go.”“I have to go.”She sighed. “I know.”She leaned back, looking up at me with those eyes that had captivated me from day one. I leaned down and kissed her. It was supposed to be a goodbye kiss, but it was so much more. Before I knew it, things were quickly escalating. She stumbled backward, my arms going around her to hold her close as my mouth plundered hers.She groaned, running her hands down my back. I stepped closer to her. My body pushed against hers as I tried to get closer. Then I felt her up against the wall. I rubbed my lower body against hers, pulling a loud moan from her as my erection rubbed against her, the scrubs a thin barrier.I pulled my mouth away, runn
SadeIt felt a little funny to be back at the airport after being there just last night. I waited along with a horde of other people. A stream of people came through the gates, announcing a plane had deboarded. I waited to see if my dad would be among the many people coming my way.He was. I smiled when I saw him. I waved. “Dad!”He looked up, scanning the area. I waved bigger. He saw me, the typical stern look on his face as he walked toward me a bag slung over his shoulder. He always packed light.“You look good,” he said.I smiled. “Thanks. You look like you’ve been getting some sun as well.”He nodded. “Your mother wanted a new deck.”“Damn, that’s ambitious.”He smirked. “I hired some help. The project proved to be too big for me.”I laughed. “I bet. I’m glad you got some help.”“What’s on the agenda?” he asked, getting right down to business.I shrugged. “I was thinking we could go furniture shopping.”“You don’t have any furniture?”“I have furniture, but I want to get a bed fo
SadeI grabbed my purse and headed out. It was also a chance for me to check in with Trent. I called, and it went straight to voicemail. “Hey, babe. Just checking in with you. I’m grabbing some stuff to make my dad dinner. I’ll try and call you after he goes to bed.”I slid the phone into my pocket and grabbed a basket to start my shopping. I would never claim to be a great cook, but I could make tacos. When I got back to the condo, my dad had a screwdriver and was tightening the lock on my window. I knew he would be unable to resist doing something.I felt my phone vibrate in my purse and immediately froze. My dad looked at me. “Should you get that?”“Get what?”“Your phone—unless something else is vibrating in your purse,” he said dryly.I blushed. “Oh. It’s fine. I’m sure it’s just Khloe. I’ll call her later.”Did I look guilty? I felt guilty. The way he was looking at me like he didn’t believe made me feel even guiltier. I carried the bag into the kitchen and immediately got start
TrentToday was the first day of what I hoped was going to be a smart business decision. Gabe was at the new hotel—alone. He was going to be taking meetings with contractors and putting out any of the little fires that always came up during a renovation. Richie and I were only a phone call away, and ultimately, the contractors would come to me with anything big, but it was up to Gabe.I was slowly buying into the idea of the kid managing the hotel and Richie taking over the day-to-day stuff at the other two. I had already hired extra office staff to support them. They didn’t know my real reason for adding extra help.I clicked the mouse, zooming in on one of the hotel properties for sale in Fresno. I should have been catching up on the pile of paperwork and the unanswered emails, but I was thinking about my future. I knew what I wanted for that future. Sade. I wanted Sade.My idea was to buy a hotel in Fresno and move closer to her to run said hotel. That meant Richie and Gabe would h
TrentKhloe approached us. “Too much?” she asked.Sade wiped a tear from her eye. “I love you. You are amazing. Thank you.”I nodded. “Yes, thank you. This is absolutely stunning. I could have never imagined it could look like this. Truly, thank you.”“The photographer was in earlier,” she said. “The one for the brochure.” “Perfect, thanks,” I said still in disbelief.“I think you two are supposed to be heading to the front for your little introduction,” she said, shooing us away.We spent the next two hours dancing and mingling with our guests. Justin approached me at one point and asked to talk with me in private. I was immediately on guard.“What’s going on?” I asked him in the hall outside the ballroom.“I wasn’t thrilled that the two of you ran off and got married without a word to anyone,” he started.“I’m really sorry about that.”“I know you are. I want to thank you for taking such good care of my little girl. I couldn’t have asked for a better son-in-law. Welcome to the fami
TrentI wasn’t the least bit nervous. I chalked it up to being an experienced groom. If other couples knew how much easier and how less stressful it was to have the wedding a couple of months after being married, everyone would do it. I didn’t have any wedding day jitters, and I wasn’t worried the family would hate me or the bride would be a wreck.It was easy-peasy. Sade and I had opted to stay apart last night just to make the day a little more special. Her mother had insisted on it, and I was happy to go along with the plan.I had yet to see Sade’s dress. She refused to give me any details about it and often teased it was a red dress. I told her to wear whatever she wanted, but I was secretly hoping for something traditional.I walked into position in front of the archway, which was actually a pergola covered in lush green ferns at the English Garden in Wolf Lakes Park. Sade and I had searched for the perfect place to hold the ceremony. It had taken Khloe’s very impressive negotiat
SadeI didn’t have to ask where he wanted me to go. My body responded just as he demanded. I moaned, loud and low in my throat as the orgasm flooded my body. I jerked and spasmed against him, my hips grinding against his hand as he held me close.He stepped back and gently turned me to face the bed. The damn thing was so high, it hit me about mid-thigh. I moved to lift my leg to climb on the bed when he stopped me.“Lie across the bed,” he ordered, his voice thick with desire.I did as he said, lying face down on the bed, my feet on the floor, my ass exposed. His hands caressed over both cheeks before he slid one hand between my thighs. I felt the finger part my swollen folds and held my breath, waiting for that first penetration.When his finger slid inside me, I moaned with pleasure. He pulled the finger out and replaced it with his swollen cock. He slid in slowly, one hand on my back and the other holding my hip. I didn’t want to move. Everything felt so good.I could feel the hair
SadeI said my goodbyes to Khloe and Holly and went in search of Trent. I checked the back patio where I had seen him last. He wasn’t there. I drifted down the hall and spotted him in his office, sitting at his desk. He looked a little tired, but I hoped he wasn’t too tired. I had plans for him and his body.“Hey, husband of mine,” I said, startling him.He looked up from the laptop and smiled. “Hey, wife of mine.”“So, the house is empty. We’re alone, like really alone, for the first time in our new house with that big ol’ bed. Why aren’t we naked?”He grinned and closed the laptop. He got up from his chair and made his way toward me. His limp was noticeable as he moved. I imagined the strain of the day was catching up to him. I didn’t dare offer to wait until he was feeling better or comment on the knee at all. He didn’t need me reminding him of his injury.He reached for me, yanking my hips against his lower body, and kissed me soundly. I kissed him back, giving him all I had. My t
TrentI burst into laughter. “No!”Khloe nodded. “Yes. Me and the saleswoman had to talk him out of it.”“It wasn’t a real bear,” I protested.“All the same, it was ugly and just looked scary,” Khloe said.“I’m glad you opted for the other one,” Sade said.“Me too,” I agreed.Leia came bounding in through the doggy door I had put in for her. Her tongue lolled out of her mouth, and she had a huge smile on her face. She loved the backyard. I gave her a piece of pizza crust, which she eagerly chomped down and waited for more. After we had stuffed our faces with as much pizza as we could take, I went outside with Leia to check out the new deck furniture.The ladies joined me, marveling at the view and the massive backyard.“When did this get here?” Sade asked, looking at the furniture and the table set.I grimaced. “Yesterday.”She burst into laughter. “You’re dangerous with a credit card and a computer.”I held up a hand. “Technically, this was on Khloe.”Sade spun around. “What? You did
TrentI was humming with energy. I had never been so damn excited in all my life. In my eyes, it was the first day of the rest of my life. Sure, I had plenty of those first days, but now it was really the first day. It was going to be the first day in our new house with all of our new things and our new marriage. It was like I had been waiting my entire life for this one day to happen.Now that it was finally here, I could hardly contain my excitement. I had kept poor Sade up until two o’clock packing. We’d called in reinforcements. Holly and Khloe were both carrying boxes to load into the three waiting cars.“Are you sure I can’t hire a rental truck?” I complained.“No, I don’t have anything that big,” Sade said again. “It’s just boxes. It will be faster to load everything in the cars and make one trip.”I wanted to whine and complain that it wasn’t going fast enough. Unfortunately, my leg had been acting up, and walking up and down the stairs proved to be too much.“I can hire mover
Sade“Thank you for worrying about me, but I promise I’m going to be okay,” I assured Trent.He leaned down and kissed my forehead. Khloe came out of the bedroom dressed in an outfit that showcased all of her assets. Her makeup was heavy, and she looked like she was ready to have a good time.“I’m outta here!” she said. “You kids behave yourselves, and don’t have sex on that couch. If that couch is staying here with me, I don’t want to be sitting where you guys have done it.”I grinned, giving her a sweet angelic smile. “How do you know we haven’t already done it on this couch?”Trent nearly choked.She wrinkled up her nose. “Gross.”“Bye!” I said, waving at her as she walked out the door.We waited a few minutes, making sure she wasn’t going to come back in. Trent nearly threw me off his lap as he got to his feet. He was hauling me to the bedroom with such haste, I nearly tripped over my own feet.It was a frantic joining, both of us tearing off our clothes and falling onto the bed.
SadeI went to work a little earlier than usual to try and catch up on the latest about what had happened the day before. It was a bit of a madhouse. Reps from various agencies were present, as well as bigwigs from the head of the company I worked for. Everyone wanted to know what happened. Everything and everyone were under scrutiny.I knew I wasn’t in trouble, but I still felt like there were a lot of eyes focused on the new girl. I kept my head down and concentrated on my work, doublechecking everything I did to make sure I didn’t make any mistakes. Holly was quiet as well. We were both doing what we could not to draw any attention to ourselves.All I could think about was getting home to Trent. I felt like I had nearly blown it with my little freak out over money. It was hard to accept so much from him. My dad was fiercely independent, never accepting a handout from anyone and making damn sure he expected the same from me.We’d always had what we needed, and I didn’t think I had e
TrentI kept my thoughts to myself and finished making dinner. We sat down to eat, the tension thick in the room. It reminded me of the hours and minutes before a big thunderstorm hit. You could feel it in the air. You knew it was coming, but you didn’t know when that first boom of thunder would ring out.“I’m going to lay down,” Khloe said, clearing away her plate and quickly making her escape.She obviously sensed it as well. I knew our first fight was coming. I just wasn’t sure how big the fight was going to be or what it was going to be about. I couldn’t think of anything that had happened that would result in a fight. We’d had a minor disagreement about who was going to pay for what, but I was confident it had been settled.“I’m tired as well,” Sade announced and stood up.She quickly cleared away everything except my plate in front of me. I was definitely in hot water. I dreaded hearing it, but I needed to know what was going on. I didn’t like the tension between us. I finished