A Date to Remember (5 page)

“Welcome to the Mile High Club,” he said with a chuckle in her ear.

Sam laughed. She found that she enjoyed his sense of humor, how he could turn pleasure into laughter, just as he had when he’d commented on her taste. If she wasn’t careful, very careful, she could be in really deep trouble. Shaking away her thoughts, not wanting to follow that track, she turned her head to look over her shoulder at him.

“I say we see how many positions we can do before the flight ends. I’m sure there’s a record somewhere on the Internet for this type a thing, and I have a need to beat it.”

He laughed as he lifted from her, pulling his cock, still hard, from her pussy. When he sat back up on the couch and watched her with an amused expression and a hand out to her, she felt that curious twinge in her chest.

Yep, she was in trouble.

“I’m game if you are,” he said then, and she took his hand.

Chapter Nine

They reached Joel’s house with him barely able to walk. God, but the woman was insatiable. He’d never thought he would ever describe a woman like that, but it was true. He’d barely been able to catch his breath when she’d finally sighed contentedly and said she’d gotten her membership to the Mile High Club good and earned. He’d chuckled, at a loss for words of exactly how to take Sam. Of course, she hadn’t yet told him that was who she was, but he didn’t like thinking of her as Natalie when he didn’t have to. When he talked to her, he’d call her Natalie, but in his mind, she was Sam, his Samantha.

Wait, his?

She wasn’t his. This was a game, and he was just infatuated with her sex drive. He hadn’t gotten this satisfied by a woman in quite some time. If ever, for that matter. He just wasn’t used to having that.

Joel led her to his home, wondering what she thought of the exclusive condominium. He was on the top floor, keeping the roof as his private domain. He hadn’t thought much about the steel-and-glass body of the building, hadn’t paid attention to the red and gold uniformed doorman who led them in and deposited them in the elevator. He hadn’t thought of any of it since he had purchased the building. The bottom floors were his offices, the headquarters of his company. It made it easy when he needed to work late nights and couldn’t get much sleep.

Now he looked at the slate, black, and white decor with different eyes. He wondered what she thought of it. What did she think of his carefully designed home in cool chrome, black, and neutral colors? Did she think his home was inviting? And why did he care? This was a business arrangement. Albeit a pleasurable one, it still was a business transaction. He wanted to work her out of his system, and he was paying a hefty price to do just that. He would get his money’s worth out of her body, and then he’d be done. She’d get the best his money could buy while she was here and then walk away a quarter of a million dollars richer. She was most definitely getting the better end of the deal. That thought out of his head, he relaxed, and decided they needed to stay away from the bedroom. She addled his brain. He couldn’t afford that. He led her to the living room and sat her down on the couch.

“Make yourself at home. Would you like a drink?”

“Yes. Scotch will do.” She smiled to herself, and he wondered what she was thinking and then thought it didn’t matter.

He poured her a finger of scotch, tossed in a couple ice cubes to give it a bit of chill, and then poured himself some straight. After he handed the glass to her, he took his down in one gulp.

“Want to watch a movie? I think we’ve worn ourselves out, at least for a couple hours,” he said.

Sam colored prettily, and he wondered if that blush went all over her body. Shaking his head, he stood up. He had to stop thinking about getting this woman in bed. He didn’t contemplate too closely that was the very reason he had her here. For now, he just needed some distance.

“That will be fine.”

“Well, finish your drink. I’ll show you to our room, and you can clean up there. We’ll settle and watch the movie after. I’m sure I have something in there you can wear for now. I’ll take you shopping in the morning.”

“I have clothes, you know.”

“Indulge me,” he said then, and she drank her scotch down in response. He felt a grudging respect for the woman who could down scotch like that without any reaction.

Once in his bedroom, he showed her the en suite that held a seating area and then led to the bathroom. She disappeared into the shower, and he pulled out one of his silk shirts for her to throw on. That done, he found his way to one of the guest rooms and took a shower. Once done, he dressed in pajama bottoms and padded barefoot and shirtless to the living room. The sight that greeted him stopped him cold.

Sam sat on his couch, her feet curled up under her, her shapely legs barely hidden by his shirt in her position. The powder-blue color did something to her complexion, made it look deeper, tastier. Her hair was damp and in curls around her face, which was now bare of any makeup. He couldn’t understand it, but he found her more beautiful now, with no makeup, no artful outfits, all natural. She was breathtaking. She looked up at him with a soft smile on her full lips, and his groin tightened. She was amazing.

“I waited for you to pick the movie. I didn’t know where your collection was.”

Joel nodded, not quite able to speak just yet. He walked over to a cabinet and opened it. He had an array of movies stacked there. He was a bit of a movie buff.

“Are those kung fu flicks I see?” she asked, standing.

“Yeah, why?” he asked, turning to her.

She hurried to the cabinet, not gracefully at all. It was more like a near run. Amused, he watched her as she went through his collection of old martial arts movies. Some he’d had to pay to have transferred to DVDs so he could watch them easier.

“Oh my God!” she squealed, the sound both delighted and surprised.

He wondered what had made her so happy. Some sappy romance film he had only to make some woman or other more in the mood to go to his bed, probably. He was surprised to see her lift up something entirely different.

“You have the
Five Deadly Venoms
? I love this movie. I choose this.”

“You want to watch that?” he asked, dumbfounded.

“Yes. Are you going to start the tomboy jokes? I’ve heard them all before, I assure you,” she said defensively. She moved to put the movie back, but he stopped her.

“I didn’t mean to make you think I didn’t want to see the movie. I love it. It’s one of my favorites. I just was surprised that you picked it.”

“I’m a fan of old martial arts movies. Culturally it says a lot about Japan and China. Depending on which one you watch, you can see the history there,” she said then.

“Beautiful, knowledgeable, and likes action movies? A woman after my own heart,” he said on a laugh, surprised that he meant it slightly more than he probably intended. Uncomfortable once again with the pull this woman had on him, he took the movie from her and went to put it in the DVD player.

“Have a seat, and I’ll get this started,” he said.

“Got any popcorn?” she asked.

“In the kitchen. I’ll get it.”

“No worries. I’m sure I’ll find it. Just get the movie set up. By time you are done with that, I’m sure I’ll have the popcorn going.”

She got up then and went toward his kitchen. He could hear her opening and closing cabinets, and he readied the movie, turned on the surround sound, and got everything set up. By the time he sat down with the remote in hand, he heard the popcorn popping.

“Where are your bowls?”

“In the cabinet to the right of the refrigerator,” he called back.

It was oddly domestic having her getting things together in the kitchen as he set up the movie. It was more like a date night. He’d tried to avoid getting her in bed, where her pull was nearly magnetic, but he’d stepped into another pothole. He didn’t know how to deal with a woman who could interest him even outside of the bedroom. She wasn’t like anything he had ever experienced. She surprised him with the subtleties of her personality. When she’d talked about the kung fu movies, she had spoken from a place of knowledge. She wasn’t just some floozy who was good only for lying on her back. He wished, at this moment, that was all she was.

When Sam came back in the room, she carried a big bowl of popcorn. He could smell the butter she’d drizzled on top, and his mouth watered. He wondered if she’d put salt on it too. She sat down and produced a small napkin. She opened it gingerly and he could see she’d put salt inside of the napkin.

“I wasn’t sure how you felt about salt, so I kept it on the side.”

“What’s popcorn without salt?” he asked.

“My thoughts exactly.”

He watched her sprinkle the salt over the popcorn and mix it up. She then set the bowl down on his coffee table and went back the kitchen. When he heard water running, he figured she was washing her hands. She came back quickly enough, curled up on the couch by his side, and put the bowl of popcorn between her crossed legs. He groaned inwardly. He knew something else he wanted to eat in that same spot.

“Let’s get this show on the road,” she said then, popping a few pieces in her mouth.

Joel started the movie without saying anything else. He watched as the dying master of the infamous Poison Clan sent his prized student, Yan Tieh, to find out if the skills he taught were being used for evil. But the movie, though excellent, didn’t keep his attention. He couldn’t help watching the woman beside him as she watched the movie. She’d obviously seen it countless times if her repeating whole lines were anything to go by. She was completely engrossed in the film. Every once in a while, she’d lean over and tell him something about Chinese culture, and why some of what occurred was even possible.

He got a different glimpse of her. This was Sam. There was no artifice here. He could have easily asked Maddox about her, about who she was. Natalie would have told Maddox about her best friend, but, for some reason, he wanted her to tell him. He wanted her to tell him who she was, what was really going on. She wasn’t some sultry seductress now. She was a woman enjoying a show, and including him. She wasn’t trying to take his money, get him to buy her gifts, or gain some claim on his life. She was just here. He may be paying her a lot of money to spend this month with her, but he’d told her that she could spend his money while she was here. She hadn’t yet asked for them to go somewhere shopping. With his type of money, he could have Neiman Marcus opened just so she could shop alone.

She wasn’t anything like he’d expected. He liked her. He actually liked her.

Chapter Ten

When the movie went off, Sam clapped and whistled. Joel’s laughter made her smile. She was amped up, ready for an all-night movie date. He had a few movies that she was drooling to see. She hadn’t seen
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin
in quite some time. The movie had made her stand up and pay attention to Gordon Liu. Joel even had
Lady with a Sword
, one of the first movies directed by a woman in the kung fu world and starring a female lead. The revenge movie was masterfully done, and Sam wanted to see it in good quality.

“You have an amazing collection here.
36th Chamber
can be hard to find sometimes. So is
Lady with a Sword
and
Master of the Flying Guillotine
. I haven’t even seen that one.”

Excited she got up, popcorn bowl empty, to pick another movie.

“You up for it?” she asked Joel, turning over her shoulder to peer at him behind her bent form.

His eyes were glued to her ass. She remembered, belatedly, that she hadn’t put on underwear. It seemed pointless to shower if she were just going to put on some messy underwear. Yuck. She sank down to her knees, not wanting him to think she’d meant to entice him.

“I’m up, all right.”

She laughed, but just shook her head. “I think you’ve beat me up enough. You’ve pulled my attention now with these movies. You’re stuck with a movie marathon now, buddy.”

“I think I can handle that. Why are you so interested in these movies?”

“I don’t know. I guess I always have been. And, before you ask, no, I didn’t grow up with a bunch of brothers. Actually, I’m an only child. It started with anime first, as a kid. Then I started watching movies. Over time I started understanding the language. I guess I watched one too many subtitled flicks,” she said, laughing.

“So you understand Chinese?”

“Chinese and Japanese, actually. I just got really into it. I loved the culture, the movies, the history. It went from a hobby into… Well, it just grew from there,” she corrected hurriedly. She’d almost said it had grown into her career, but that had no place with her as Natalie.

“Speak languages to many clients?” he asked then. He was shrewd. He’d picked up on her slip. He watched her intently now. She thought that going closer to the truth would be better.

“Yes, sometimes. It’s nice to have someone who can translate or be your guide.” She shrugged then, choosing the Shaolin movie and reclaimed her seat. “It pays,” she finished.

“I see,” he said.

She thought she saw disappointment before his expression cleared quickly. When he pulled her to his side, his fingers making lazy circles on her hips, she figured she’d imagined it.

“Well, I can go for an all-nighter. Besides, I think you dried me up for the night. Pick a few, and we’ll watch them. Remember, we’ve got all month long to go through them all.”

“Yeah, but you’ve got about sixty, at least down there. You’re looking at two movies a night, buddy, at least. Be sure you want to make that promise,” she said, laughing.

“We’ll see plenty tonight, and maybe I’ll just set a day aside for us to do movie day until we go to bed. How does that sound?”

“I’m in. Start this buddy up. We’ve got a night ahead of us!”

* * * *

By the time the last movie they were going to watch finished, the sun was rising. She’d let Joel fall asleep hours ago, quietly putting another movie in every time one went off. Now she was exhausted, her eyes heavy. Joel was a pretty good pillow. He’d stretched out on the couch, and she sprawled against his chest, legs tangled with his. In sleep, he looked very nearly boyish. His jaw was slack instead of firm, his assessing gaze hidden. The crescents of his eyelashes were like dark half-moons on his cheeks. He was so handsome. She smoothed her hand down his chest and laid her head down on him. She’d never had a date like this before. She’d only watched movies like this alone. Never had someone else shared her love of films. She sighed, feeling comfortable in a way she hadn’t quite expected. When she shifted again, Joel’s arms tightened around her.