MichaelA year ago, I never thought I’d return to Bar Harbor with a woman. Sure, I wanted my new assistant to handle the charity event up there, but not as my partner. Tanner took off ahead of us, dodging the cold Maine water as it slid up against the shore. He collected the shells under the muddy surface. Those were the best ones he’d said. The hidden ones.That little guy had something right. You needed to work for the things that were worth it in life. And I worked hard to get Rainey and Tanner into my life. While it didn’t take much convincing after we got everything out in the open, I thanked whoever was watching over us that I found what I needed in life to be happy.If anyone had asked me if my happiness involved a single mother and her child, I would have laughed in their face. But Rainey and Tanner were what I was looking for since Cynthia died. And I couldn’t be happier. Sometimes I thought about my life before them, and a sick feeling accompanied the thoughts. So I tried no
Michael“So good,” the pretty blond I had bent over my hotel bed moaned as she gripped the sheets, taking me like a champ.“Yeah. You are.” I ran my hand up her back, pressing my fingers into her skin as she arched and cried out. I’d hit the spot deep inside of her I’d been after for the last thirty minutes. She was exquisite, and where I wished she was the ballsy red head I’d met in Bar Harbor a few months back, she wasn’t.Lisa was soon to be a faint memory, though I hated to see her go. I’d almost given up my bachelorhood for the pretty girl, but she wanted a younger man. Good for her. The blond beneath me was more than happy to let me take the reins, not that she had much of a choice.I rolled my hips and drove the full length of my cock deep inside of her as she whimpered and pressed back, hungry for anything I would give her.“Michael. Don’t stop.” She lifted up a little and tucked her hips in, tugging on my erection tightly with her sweet body.“I won’t. Just come for me.” I be
Michael“Hello Sam,” I said to my head of staff and security. I managed to leave him in Manhattan this year, and it was a hard-fought argument to do so. I played to his ego and had told him I wanted no one else to keep my affairs in order while I was away.“Good afternoon, Michael,” Sam said. “After not hearing from you since yesterday, I wanted to check in.”Sam wasn’t much older than me, but he was a fatherly-type of man. Overbearing as hell sometimes but I’d rather he be really good at his job than being a slacker.“How’s everything there?” I reached up to brush my hair back.“Just peachy. Where are you?”I glanced at the nearest exit sign. “I’m about forty-five minutes out. I could make that thirty if you need something.”“No, no, Sir,” Sam said quickly. “Take your time.”I laughed. Sam hated driving with me. Which I think is another reason he decided to stay in Manhattan. I would have given him time off for the holiday, but he insisted on working through it. He didn’t talk much a
Rainey“Mommy, what is this thing?” Tanner held up a dark brown blob of an ornament. It slowly spun on the metal hook in front of him. The look of disgust on his normally adorable face was laughable.I stood from the couch and walked over to him. “Tanner, honey, Mommy made that when she was in preschool.”“It’s really ugly,” he said, curling his lip. “Like super, duper, uper ugly.”“It’s sentimental,” I said and ruffled his sandy blonde hair and laughed. There was something precious about the fact that kids didn’t have a filter. Not in the slightest. I took the ornament from him and examined the damage that another year in a box took on the fragile piece. I think it was supposed to be in the shape of a bear made from clay. One of the eyes was missing and there were several chips on the surface, but Mom insisted we keep it throughout the years. I knew not to throw it away. It was the first ornament we hung every year. She’d definitely look for it.The door in the kitchen squeaked open
RaineyI walked back to the living room as if I hadn’t sneaked a taste.“What’s Dad up to today?” I asked, opening the next box of decorations. Tinsel burst from the stuffed box and I tried to untangle it.“He’s checking some job.” Mom snapped her fingers and I looked up at her. She mimed swiping her hand over her hair.I did the same and realized I had a chunk of lasagna in my hair. Busted. I smiled at her and tied my hair up into a messy bun. It was always in my face. I needed a cut and coloring really bad, but that wasn’t in the budget this month.She rolled her eyes. “You never could wait.”“It’s so good, though, Mom.”“Well, you know how your father is with leftovers. I need to give it to someone.”Dad hated leftovers. It was a repeated argument in their house. At least Tanner and I would benefit from Dad’s pickiness. Though I had an idea she made two lasagnas instead of one, knowing we would be able to eat it for a few days.“Can I have some too?” Tanner asked. He was a scrawny
MichaelMy body was stiff as hell when I woke the next morning. Something about switching beds or the way I fucked the blond the day before had my hurting in places I didn’t realize could hurt.I ran my hand down my stomach and stroked my erection as I glanced over at the clock, wondering if I had time to treat myself to a release before starting what was sure to be a long day.Lisa crossed my mind before Cynthia took her place.“Nope.” I got up. I wasn’t jacking off to the memory of the women in my past, at least not that morning. Next best thing to self-love was the gym. Thankfully, I had one on the second floor of my penthouse. It would have to do.The sun was barely over the horizon, which made the room just light enough to distinguish the outline of each piece of equipment. I enjoy running on the treadmill when it's still early. Looking over the NYC skyline from the 53rd floor gave me an adrenaline spike to start my day. I pressed the buttons on the machine for one of the harder
MichaelA half-hour later, I was at my desk. I’d only finished about half the smoothie. A few days away from it had made my taste buds turn against it. I choked down the rest of it, not delaying the inevitable. The chalky after taste was still in my mouth when I picked up the phone.I called Sandra first. She answered on the third ring.“Hello?” a muffled voice said from the other end of the call.“Sandra?” I asked, checking to see I had the right number.She coughed and loudly cleared her throat. I pulled the speaker away from my ear.“Yeah, boss. Sorry. I’m getting a cold.”Getting? She sounded like hell. I rubbed my forehead, feeling the beginning of a headache. She spearheaded all of the interviews for the assistant position; I needed her well, like now.“Are you healthy enough to chat?” I asked firmly. It was rhetorical and she knew that.There was a shuffling sound on the other end. “Of course I am. What do you need?”“How many interviews are set up for tomorrow?” My headache gr
RaineyAn ear-piercing alarm shattered my peaceful sleep. I sat up in bed and attempted to catch my breath after being startled awake. I’d set Killian’s ringtone to be the most annoying sound on the planet, so I’d know exactly who it was when he called. Hearing it that early in the morning wasn’t the most pleasant way to wake up. I grabbed my phone, ripping the charger from the socket. I pressed the END button and tossed the phone on the bed before throwing myself down on my back again. I shoved my hair out of my face and tried to calm my racing heart. It was a shitty way to wake up and he probably thought it was some sort of hilarious joke.Why the hell was Killian calling me so early? I glanced over at the clock and my heart ramped up again.Shit! Shit! Shit! I launched myself off the bed. Why didn’t my alarm go off? I grabbed my phone again and checked the clock app.Damn it!I accidentally set it for six p.m. instead of a.m. It was a good thing I pulled out my clothes for the inte
MichaelA year ago, I never thought I’d return to Bar Harbor with a woman. Sure, I wanted my new assistant to handle the charity event up there, but not as my partner. Tanner took off ahead of us, dodging the cold Maine water as it slid up against the shore. He collected the shells under the muddy surface. Those were the best ones he’d said. The hidden ones.That little guy had something right. You needed to work for the things that were worth it in life. And I worked hard to get Rainey and Tanner into my life. While it didn’t take much convincing after we got everything out in the open, I thanked whoever was watching over us that I found what I needed in life to be happy.If anyone had asked me if my happiness involved a single mother and her child, I would have laughed in their face. But Rainey and Tanner were what I was looking for since Cynthia died. And I couldn’t be happier. Sometimes I thought about my life before them, and a sick feeling accompanied the thoughts. So I tried no
RaineyThat was so soon. “I’m not sure,” I said, glancing over at Tanner. He was pointing to the polar bear and saying something that I couldn’t make out from that distance. “As I’ve said, I’ve already been away from Tanner too long since we just got back.”Michael chuckled, and I narrowed my eyes.“What’s so funny?” I asked.Michael pecked me on the lips. “I want to take Tanner with us.”“Oh!” I said.Michael shrugged. “I could take you both skiing, or we can hang out at the lodge. There are some places in town I’m sure he would like.”“That’s so gracious,” I said. Tanner would love to come, especially since Michael had his own plane. Tanner would be so excited. I wonder if that would ruin him for commercial flights, but to be honest, it ruined me for them already. I didn’t say it aloud, but this reminded me of having a family vacation. A real one. And I could count on Michael to follow through, unlike Killian with his grand plans and no follow through.“We should go tell him then?”
RaineyIt took me almost a week to get used to the weather back home. The vacation with Michael was the perfect escape, and I never wanted to go back. Michael remained professional in the office. At least during office hours. It took him until Tuesday at six, when Sandra had left, to christen our relationship over his desk. While I did prefer the comfort of bed, making love with Michael in more public spaces really turned me on.There was no more hiding, and I could finally be completely honest with him about every aspect of my life. I never did that with Killian. Maybe I thought I did, but after being with him for a while, I started to keep secrets from him. Secrets about how I felt and what I did when he wasn’t around. I opened up to Michael like never before, and that led to a comfort in our relationship that rivaled my feelings toward my flesh and blood family. Michael integrated himself into our family in such a short amount of time. Mom and Tanner loved him. And while Dad tried
MichaelAfter spending the entire day on the beach, I was wiped by the time dinner came around. Rainey and I packed our things after making love one more time that morning, so we were ready to leave after the last glass of wine was poured. There wasn’t a moment during the car ride, boat ride, and flight that we weren’t touching each other. I held her hand as if it were my life vest in a vast choppy ocean. Even though we declared that we wanted to be together, I still felt a little unsteady. I wanted to test our capability as a couple when our lives were back to normal at home, but at the same time, I didn’t want to jinx anything.Rainey brought out a lot of first-time emotions from me. I actually felt nervous when we departed the plane and headed for my car. Constantine waited for us with the back door open.“Hope you had a nice trip,” he said to me. Then he smiled at Rainey.“We did,” Rainey said and took my hand.Immediately, my fears were squashed. She had a way of anchoring me and
MichaelI woke the next morning with the best feeling inside of me. A ball of hope and happiness filled my insides. I couldn’t remember the time I felt this much at peace with someone other than Cynthia. Her memory was still strong within me, but Rainey was a new chapter of my life, and I had to allow her to take precedence over my previous wife. I had to. It was the only way I could commit to her completely. I said a silent final farewell to Cynthia, knowing that we were both in a better place. Me, here with a perfect woman, and Cynthia in a place without pain and suffering.I slowly turned over, careful not to wake Rainey. She looked peaceful. Her thick blonde eyelashes fanned over her eyes, and her mouth was open slightly as she breathed deeply. She was still sound asleep. I doubted she would wake if I touched her, but I didn’t dare test that theory. She deserved to rest. After everything we put each other through and the heavy fucking session we participated in last night, I wante
RaineyMichael lifted one of my legs and scooted closer. His tip pressed against my lower lips and I sucked in a breath as he entered me. He filled me quickly, and I gritted my teeth as my body adjusted to his length. He slowly moved inside of me, pressing deeper with each thrust.He trailed a finger over my face, moving my hair away, tucking it behind my ear.His eyes locked on mine and I couldn’t help drawing my lip into my mouth, sucking on it as he continued to move inside of me.His gaze fell to my mouth, and he leaned forward, sucking on my bottom lip.I wrapped my arms around him, feeling the tensing of his back muscles under my fingertips.He kissed my neck, slowly pressing his lips against my skin. The movement of his tongue on me made me shiver.I pulled back, wanting to see his face. I felt his pleasure when I sucked him off earlier, but I loved seeing him turned on. The usual blaze his in eyes was like an inferno, burning me from the inside out.“Touch yourself,” he said.
RaineyMichael’s kiss seared me inside and out. I was happy he removed the covers, I was already on fire from his touch. I came into his room to tell him how I felt, and for once, he was the one to speak first about his feelings. He wanted more than just sex. We were on the same page with everything. That’s all I needed to hear from him to make my choice.The weight of his body on me squeezed the air out of my lungs, but I didn’t want him to move. Every part of him was hard. He was the strong man that I’ve always wanted, inside and out. We had our differences, but they were petty compared to the passion we had for each other.Michael’s hands roamed my body as if he painted every part of using his hand as a brush. Heat licked over my body at each place he touched, creating a pool of molten lava in my center.He tugged at the thin straps of my night gown, one at a time, exposing each of my breasts. The cool air in the room touched the peak of each one, tightening and hardening them.My
MichaelI debated pushing the envelope. What did I have to lose? We already kissed so I knew she felt something for me. She might not be ready to commit, but with Rainey, it seemed she needed a small shove in any direction to go anywhere beyond her comfort zone. And then the words tumbled out anyway. “Is there any more of your heart to spread around?”Her eyebrows drew together. “Why do you ask?”“You, Rainey,” I started, locking eyes with her. “You’re the first thing I think about each morning.”Her eyes widened.“I think about you all day. And you’re the last thought I have before bed.”“You do?”“Yes,” I said. Why did she think so little of herself? How many times did I have to remind her of my affection for her? “I wanted you back at work so I could be close to you even if that meant we weren’t together. I want to be with you. So badly. You have no idea what you do to me. I had to work extra hard just to be your boss, but I want so much more. And I have a feeling you do too. I wan
MichaelAfter our kiss and discussion about Rainey’s past, while we were on the private beach, the gap in our relationship had lessened. Though afterward, we shared a relaxing dinner by the pool and didn’t mention any progression for ourselves within that relationship. After putting myself out there, I felt a little exposed, but I didn’t push her. Sure, she had told me her ex was a dick and that her son was the light of her life, but she had to work on her issues before we made ourselves official. She knew my feelings. I had to trust that she would come back to me when she was ready.When dinner was over, Rainey stood up and excused herself.She kissed me on the cheek, an apparent rejection after the kiss we had in town, and went into the house.I sat by the pool, finishing my whiskey and contemplating life. I hadn’t remembered feeling this way since I first dated Cynthia. The anticipation of what the other was thinking drove me insane. I could have drunk the rest of the night, but I