DORISAnother package arrived for me. It was a really beautiful gold necklace that matched the bracelet Arthur gave me a few weeks ago. There was a note from Arthur. He apologized for being absent since the Italy trip and promised that he won’t do it again.I held the note in my hand for a while. Again, I wondered if this was a pattern. Was Arthur retreating for a few days after a period of intimacy?It hurt less this time, and I thought I understood it more. Arthur's promise that he wouldn’t do it again made me feel better.I continued to scour all of the New York City government websites, especially all of the ones regarding building news and building permit departments.I found one that announced a small charity ball that was celebrating some private donations. With Arthur’s help, I managed to get myself invited.I wore the Dior limited edition dress. I was very glad that I had it back in my possession.Arthur said he would make it to the ball if he could but told me the possibilit
ARTHURI kissed Doris's ear, jaw, and neck. It was like she was becoming sweeter than ever, and I was becoming addicted to her. She arched her chest up into me, the silk of her nightgown rubbing against my bare chest.She let out this cute, throated moan, feminine and needy.I started rocking my hips into her. We felt it strongly, even through the thin fabric of my pajama pants and her silky nightgown. She was beginning to get so wet.Her little moans got louder. I releasee her wrists and clamped one hand over her mouth."Hush, Little Dove. We need to be quiet. You can be quiet for me, can't you?”She nodded.I used my other hand to knead her breast, and I rubbed my thumb around and across her nipple.Doris was so responsive. It just drove me higher."I'm going to squeeze you gently and get harder," I said, taking her pretty nipple and squeezing it between my fingers."You like that, sweetheart?" I knew she did. I also noticed she liked me talking about it when I did it.I plucked one
ARTHURIt was 5:30 p.m., and for once, I could wrap up my business day at a decent hour.I looked out my office windows from AmeriCapital. It had been a good business day.I leaned back in my deluxe office chair. I took a moment to breathe deeply and think about how the past few weeks had gone. Not bad overall.My phone pinged to let me know I had a text. I pulled it out of my pocket and looked at it. It was from Doris.'I’d like to talk to you about a few things. Do you have time tonight or tomorrow to meet?'Even though the text should be neutral, it didn’t sound good. When a woman said I want to talk, that was never good.I paused for a minute. 'Today is better.' Who knew how tomorrow would go?'Sure, do you want me to come to your apartment?' I texted.The three dots indicated she was typing. The dots appeared and then disappeared. After a minute, they reappeared again.'Can we meet at the diner? I’ve barely eaten all day.''Of course, and you better take better care of yourself,
DORIS I took my time sauntering over to Arthur. I pulled my skirt up to my thighs and swung one leg over so I was straddling him. He yanked me closer to his body so my crotch was up against his. “That’s what I’m talking about,” Arthur said. He grabbed my waist with one hand, speared his fingers into my hair with the other, and moved my head where he wanted. “You’re my favorite meal to devour, baby. Tonight, you’re mine.” Then he kissed me. Right away, it was explosive. I moaned into his mouth and started rocking against him. It was like whenever he kissed me. I was powerless to do anything but his wishes. Our kisses went on as if they were timeless. Arthur reached between us and started rubbing me through the gusset of my panties until I soaked them through. “Oh yeah, baby. You are so wet for me. I love it so much. We are so perfect together. So, so perfect together.” He nuzzled my breasts through the fabric of my blouse before he coaxed me to raise my arms so he coul
DORIS The limo stopped, and the chauffeur opened my door. I got out and looked around. We were in front of the Baccarat Hotel, the most expensive, luxurious, and nicest hotel in all of New York City. "We’re going to dinner here?" I asked. "We are, and I rented the Executive Suite for the night. Nathan is babysitting Mia, and I am going to give you a night you’ll remember." I reached out and held Arthur’s hand. "Every night with you is a night I’ll always remember." Arthur's smile was tender and sweet, and so was the kiss he gave me. "I feel the same way, little dove. Come, let’s start our date and have a wonderful meal." Just like every moment with Arthur, the date was magical. He fed me dessert and then showed me again he was a creative and attentive lover. He held me in his arms until sunrise. * Friday at lunchtime, a big bouquet of red roses arrived for me. Kate, my mentor, came
DORISSaturday, we went to the Lego Superstore/Museum. How many cities have an entire world devoted to Lego?If Mia wasn't the biggest Lego fan before, Saturday certainly converted her when she found out you could build a Lego castle fit for a princess. Of course, Arthur bought it for her, which made me wonder if she wasn’t beginning to get a little spoiled.But when he promised the three of us would build it together, I had to admit it wasn’t a terrible idea.At dinner, Mia asked me again when I was moving in with them; this time, Arthur looked at me over Mia's head. I didn’t know what to say.I’d never felt so torn. I was vulnerable. I guess I wasn’t as over Bob‘s cheating as I thought.I reminded myself that not all men were like Bob.I also remembered a proverb. I couldn’t remember which country originated from. 'The road that goes east can also go west.' I was never re
DORISSaturday morning, I was smiling when I got to the penthouse. I still hadn’t made many deals at Heritage Properties, but I was so glad to see Mia that my happiness overflowed.“I’m so glad you live here now,” Mia said, taking my hand. “Well, here in New York, it would be better if you lived here…” Mia said, letting go of my hand to point at the floor, “…at home.”“Mia…” Arthur growled a reprimand at her.“I know. Six weeks.” Mia looked at me. “Has it been six weeks yet?”I bent down so I was at her level. “Not yet, sweetheart.”“But you are going to move in then, right?”My heart lurched. I looked at Arthur over the top of Mia’s head. His eyes were pleading.I looked back to Mia. “We’ll see.”I stood up.Arthur, Mia, and I began our day. The streets were teeming with energy. We stopped at a bakery to get croissants and ate them as we walked
ARTHURAs I sat on the edge of the bed, still basking in the afterglow of our passionate connection, my phone buzzed with an incoming video call. It was Andrea, and a sinking feeling settled in my stomach. I reluctantly answered, the image of her stern face appearing on the screen.Luckily Doris was in the shower, and I fully intended to keep Doris out of video range. But I obviously looked like I’d just had an amazing night, because I had.“You are not still with that trash,” Andrea said instead of hello.I flinched. Be calm, I told myself."Andrea, can't you see that this obsession you have with Doris is wrong?"She scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. "Arthur, you've always been weak-willed.”“What?”“It's time you learn your place and listen to your mother's advice. Fire Doris immediately."I couldn't believe the audacity of her demands.
DORISI sang, and every song felt effortless.I went to the ladies' room at the break right before the last set, and when I came back out, there were 400 red roses all throughout the performance area. I knew this was Arthur’s doing. How did he get so many vases of roses into the Salton room in such a short time?The entire room smelled like a florist shop and looked like Valentine’s Day had come to the performance.I smiled at Arthur from up on stage and sang every romantic song I could think of.When we finished the last song, it seemed like the applause from the audience was louder than ever. Maybe all the roses put everybody in a good mood.Just as I was about to walk off the stage, Arthur came up and stopped me.“He stood in front of me at the bottom of the stage “This woman is the most amazing woman I have ever seen.”Then he walked up on stage and stood by my side. “Doris, from the first moment I met you, I knew you were special. You captured my heart and became part of my famil
DORISArthur and I exited the elevator of the penthouse and walked across the lobby, arm and arm. We had decided to work from home that morning, and I was happy that we had gotten so much work done.We were almost to the doors of the lobby when Andrea walked in. She was wearing a big cloak that covered her whole body.She opens her cloak to reveal a little baby in a sling strapped to her chest. The boy was swaddled in a light blue blanket. He was adorable.With all that had been going on in our life, I had forgotten that Andrea had probably had her baby by now.“Congratulations," Arthur said stiffly.Andrea beamed.“What are you doing here?“ Arthur asked.“The baby looks so much like you when you were a baby," Andrea said. "It made me nostalgic for when you were a child. All those times before…“ She let the sentence trail off, and I remembered how Arthur’s father died.Arthur must’ve been thinking of the same thing because he grimaced."It was a magical time,“ Andrea said. "And I want
DORISThe good news continued to roll in the next day. Mr. Owens' assistant called and said one of the hottest new songwriting teams had two songs available for me and the band to record. We set up a time to listen to them and decided we liked the first one better.Mr. Owens had an amazing recording studio and sound engineer professional lined up for us to use. I asked if Arthur and Mia would be allowed to come, and the record executives, the sound engineer, and the rest of the band hall said of course. Arthur cleared his schedule.It was an amazing week.We recorded the song. Even though it was hard work, it still went well. I was happy with the initial results, and I was sure it would be a hit.For a moment, it was all I could think about.Arthur and I were lying in bed that night. When I looked at his face, I could tell something was still bothering him.“Arthur, what’s on your mind?”“It’s Cathy. Not only don’t I understand why she did what she did, I can’t let her get away with i
DORISThe liquor store next to the Italian restaurant had a narrow fake hallway between the two stores. Interestingly enough, there were peek holes in the wall that allowed us to see from the liquor store into the restaurant.This worked out well for us because Nathan, Arthur, and I all got to peek out and look at Nina while she had dinner with Dr. John and Jeff.Nina looked absolutely gorgeous, and Dr. John and Jeff were entranced.We could see Dr. John and Jeff's faces completely and see Nina face in profile. We could hear them clearly thanks to the wire that Nina had stuffed down her bra.She had plied Dr. John and Jeff with liquor and flirtatious comments throughout dinner, staying clear from any serious topics.I perked up when she got to the good stuff."I can get a job with Arthur's pharmaceutical company as they rebuild," Nina said, "and I bet I could find out any secrets and new formulas they have." She let that offer hang in the air. The implications were like a tempting fru
ARTHURMonday morning, I got up while Doris was still sleeping. Despite a wonderful weekend with Doris and Mia, I hadn’t slept well.It had been a month since the fire, and I hadn’t made any progress in finding out who did it.I had my driver take me out to the pharmaceutical company. I stood in front of the charred remains of the original office building, lab, and factory.I had chosen to rebuild on another part of the property, leaving the destroyed buildings as they were as a show of what could happen when I let my defenses down.The sight of the blackened buildings filled me with grief and also a vile rage. The anger was almost too violent to control. My stomach felt like a volcano had taken up residence there and was churning, ready to explode.I had worked so hard on this pharmaceutical business. It wasn’t just the money that I lost having to rebuild that angered me. It was all the people who would have to wait longer before they could get treatment.It was the fact that formula
DORISArthur got me and an assistant for Heritage Properties, who had just gotten her real estate license. She was efficient and eager, and she took over all the real estate deals I thought would close soon.Arthur recommended an entertainment lawyer, and she went over my music contract and said it was very good, so I signed it.
DORISArthur hauled me against him. He lifted me, and I wrapped my legs around his waist and plastered myself against him."I need you in our bed," Arthur growled. "Right now."He carried me. I was too busy enjoying the feel of his body against mine— a sensation I wasn't sure I'd ever feel again— to pay attention to the elevator ride.I was too busy kissing Arthur’s neck to focus on him unlocking the penthouse, carrying me over the threshold, and kicking the door shut with his foot.Arthur kissed me like I'd been gone for months, not just a day.Arthur spun us, and my back slammed up against the drywall in the entry hall with a force that made me wonder if we left a dent.Arthur pinned me against the wall with his hips. He pulled up my shirt and stared like he couldn't believe I was here with him.His growl made my blood simmer and my breath catch. For the rest of my life, I'd never forget that animalistic sound of want and approval.My nipples hardened. Need roared through me like a
ARTHUREven though I could sense that Doris wasn’t in the apartment, I immediately began to search, going from room to room.I saw two of her suitcases in the smaller bedroom, and I immediately relaxed.I whirled around and
DORISI slept better than I thought I would. I didn’t know what my next step should be. Should I quit Heritage Properties and look for another real estate job?I was jolted out of my reverie when my phone rang. It was a number I didn’t recognize. My first thought was that perhaps it was Arthur trying to trick me, calling from a different number.