Mr. Handsome: A Billionaire Romance (7 page)

“Thank you…” she whispered and my eyes fell to her lips. They looked soft and inviting and I wanted to taste her. I slowly pressed my lips to hers and at first she stiffened. I began to move my lips gently against the incredibly soft cushions and then she started to relax, bit by bit.

I cupped her neck and my other hand went into her hair as I deepened the kiss, my tongue entering her mouth to taste. She was intoxicating. Her scent was fresh, as she’d just come out of the shower, her perfume was subtle and reminded me of flowers.

She tasted of mint and caramel candies. All I wanted to do was kiss her and stay in this moment. My dick was stiff in my jeans and I was relieved that I was wearing jeans. If I had been wearing slacks, I’d have never been able to get out of the car.

The car stopped moving and Christina broke the kiss, I think we were both a bit dazed as we realized that we were only at a red light, though I did see the restaurant down the road, so we’d be getting out soon, anyway. The driver pulled up in front of the restaurant so Christina and I could get out. I escorted her inside and the host recognized me right away.

“Oh, Signore Bates, it is lovely to see you finally brought a
molto bella
date along with you this time. Your regular table is ready for you right away.” The host gestured for us to follow a server to my usual table. It was towards the back of the dining room, secluded and very intimate. The scenery was perfect for that night. Romello’s was decorated in warm colors, rich reds and mahogany and greens. The table was set beautifully and Christina looked amazing in candlelight.

“This place is really nice. It was funny that the host knew you,” Christina said, her eyes bright when she looked at me.

“I do come here a lot. I cook sometimes, when I’m in the mood. But whenever I don’t have the patience, I come to Romello’s.” Christina smiled thoughtfully and looked at the wine menu.

“So…how does a business man get into modeling?” Christina asked me, her expression genuinely curious.

I laughed and leaned forward a bit.

“Well, my best friend, who also happens to be my assistant, Victor, suggested it one day at the office. I wanted a hobby or something to do when I wasn’t wrapped up in Stargate, so I decided, what could it hurt?

“Next thing I know, one of my interns had gotten me into Marissa’s modeling agency and I was signed up for my first Armani shoot. I liked it, it was cool, something to do you know?”

Christina nodded, her expression was again thoughtful.

“So you didn’t do it to like…I don’t know, meet girls?”

I laughed and Christina bit her lip, her eyes still lit with a smile.

“No…well, I knew that would happen, but it was sort of an added bonus. I mainly wanted to do it as a pastime. I’ve gotten to travel and meet a lot of new people. I met you…” I grinned at her and she snorted, smiling reluctantly.

“Why you’d choose
me
to go on a date with, I’ll never know. You could have your pick of women…” I don’t think she meant to say that out loud, but it was out in the open and it pissed me off a little that she saw so little of herself. What made her so unsure?

“I did have my pick of women and I chose you, Christina. Can’t you see I really like you? I haven’t even told my own mother about this restaurant and she loves Italian food,” I said earnestly. Christina shrugged and bit her lip nervously. “And you have to stop biting your lip, it’s distracting as hell.”

Christina let her bottom lip free and then seemed unsure of what to do next. “I’m sorry, I just…I’ve never had good luck with guys,” she admitted quietly.

“Well then, they’re idiots. I’m sorry to say it, but you’ve only dated idiots.”

Christina laughed, a real one and I smiled triumphantly. That was the second one, I needed to make her laugh more.

“I have only dated idiots, how'd you know?” she said, still chuckling.

I shrugged and then tapped my forehead.

“It’s a sixth sense.” I winked at her and she giggled, the sound was beautiful on my senses and made me want to hear more.

The server came by for our drink orders and I ordered a bottle of white wine.

“So where are you from?” I asked her innocently enough. Her expression sobered slightly and I was intrigued at the melancholy look in her eyes.

“I’m from Pennsylvania, Philly. I moved here to New York under a year ago,” she said almost cautiously. I wanted to know so badly what was in her past that, one, made her so insecure and shy, and two, made her seem so sad, almost.

“Why did you decide to move from Philly?” I asked, trying to get down to the root of things.

“I…um, my parents died in a car crash. I had no other family there and I wanted to start fresh. I figured if I was going to be alone, then I might as well get a change of scenery as well.” Christina was honest and I saw it pained her to talk about her parents being gone and her being truly on her own.

“I’m sorry to hear about your parents…but you’re not alone. Not anymore at least.” I smiled crookedly and she gave a small halfhearted smile in return. Her parents’ death must be fresh on her mind still. I wondered if she allowed herself to think about them often.

“You know, it’s okay to remember them. When my dad died, I found that was the only way I could heal and be the man he wanted me to be.”

Christina looked up at me in slight surprise. As if she hadn’t expected me to give her good advice.

“I try sometimes…but I just—I just can’t.” She sighed heavily and I slid my hand across the table to take hers in mine.

“I get it; with time you’ll be able to. It all takes time.” I squeezed her hand and then let it go as the waiter had returned with our wine as well as the bread basket and water. I waited until the server left us so we could go over the appetizer and dinner menus, to ask her another question.

“Would you mind if I helped you in your job search?” I asked tentatively, I didn’t know if she would find it insulting if I set up an interview for her without letting her know first at least.

“At this point, I’ll take all the help I can get. That would be very nice of you, Jeffrey.”

I gave a small sigh of relief.

“You can call me Jeff, you know, Jeffrey is so formal,” I teased her, and she shrugged while biting her lip.

“I kind of like using your whole name,” she admitted shyly. “It sounds almost regal, Jeffrey Bates, CEO of Stargate International. You sound like you should be knighted by the Queen.”

I laughed out loud at her unexpected joke and she chuckled before taking a sip of wine.

“Well I do have English roots, so it could happen.” I took a sip of my wine and then started chuckling all over again. Knighted by the Queen, where’d she come up with that? The rest of dinner went by smoothly, we talked about everything from where we grew up, to what kind of flowers and scenery we prefer.

We both loved the city, of course, but we also had a love of the beach, which I thought was perfect; I could take her on a weekend trip somewhere tropical and have her all to myself.

After dinner, we stayed at Romello’s for tiramisu and a bit more wine. Christina had a couple of glasses, whereas I only had one. I was kind of high off her and it was a weird feeling, though I didn’t reject it. After one date, I was already falling for Christina, which was crazy because usually I grew feelings for someone slowly. They crept up on me over time, they didn’t just spring up from the ground and lock on.

Once we were back at Christina’s apartment, I battled with myself as to whether I should ask to go in with her. We were standing out in the hall and she was fiddling with her keychain.

“Do you…do you want to come in?” she asked me nervously. I nodded and she unlocked the door so I could follow her inside. I closed the door and locked it behind me. The room was dark and I didn’t really want for her to turn on too many lights. I knew I said I’d take things at her pace, but from my picking out her underwear to tasting her on the car ride to the restaurant and everything I learned about her over dinner, I had a serious need to stake my claim over Christina.

She was standing just inside the living room area, next to her couch, unsure as to what should happen next. She invited me inside, she obviously wanted something more from me. “Why’d you invite me in, Christina?” I asked while walking up behind her. My hands circled around her waist and I pressed my already hardening cock into her soft behind.

She gasped and my lips found the exposed skin of her neck. “Is this what you want?” I asked against her skin, my breath made her shiver. She nodded and I hummed in appreciation, I could already anticipate what she would feel like squeezed tight around my cock. I bit her neck playfully and she shivered against me once more. My hands caressed her arms and I felt goose bumps on her skin.

I knew then that her nipples would be hard little peaks and my hands traveled up to cup her breasts. My fingers pinched and rolled the sensitive nubs, causing her to arch her back and push her breasts into my hands. A soft moan escaped her lips and the sound ignited my blood even further.

“Shit…I have to get this off of you,” I said hoarsely and pulled at her dress. She whispered that the zipper was in the back and I quickly slid the dress off of her and it pooled at her feet. All she was wearing then was those red pumps and the black lacy bra and panties. I turned her around to face me and let my eyes roam every inch of her body.

“Oh dear God, woman, you’ll be the death of me.” I was getting used to the svelte, tall model type. I hadn’t been with a curvy woman in forever and Christina was every dirty fantasy I’ve possibly ever had rolled into one sexy red pump-wearing package.

She bit her lip and tilted her head at me curiously. “Are you just saying that?”

My eyes snapped up from her breasts to meet her gaze head on.

“I assure you, I meant every word. You’re so fucking sexy…not to mention beautiful and an amazing person. I want you as mine…I need to…” I was starting to sound like a fucking caveman, my blood was rushing and my cock was stuffed painfully in my jeans; it needed to be let free and, more importantly, it needed to be deep inside Christina.

She stepped out of the pool of her dress and leaned against me. Her hands were thankfully undoing my pants while she trailed kisses across my collar and up my neck. Her mouth felt like a slow burn on my skin and I was definitely going to overheat if I had to hold back any longer.

I bit her plump bottom lip and then kissed her feverishly as she managed to undo my pants. I simultaneously pulled them off and walked over to the bed with her in my arms. Her legs wrapped around my waist and her hands gripped my back.

I laid her gently down on the bed and she watched me with hooded eyes as I pulled off my boxers, jacket, tie, and shirts. Once I was naked, I debated shutting off the lamp that was left on next to her bed. I wanted to see her, but everything was much more heightened in the dark.

I flipped it off and the room was only lighted by the dim street light through the balcony drapes. My cock strained against my stomach as I laid on top of Christina and kissed her some more. I couldn’t help grinding against her, she was soaking wet and I felt it through her panties.

I quickly undid her bra and captured her nipple in my mouth, my tongue swirling around it and sucking it into my mouth. Christina moaned and her fingers delved into my hair while I devoured her full breasts, sucking and licking my way to the other nipple.

The sound of her soft moans and whimpers had my cock throbbing and my hips moving restlessly against hers. My hands felt their way to her core and I shuddered against her when I felt how soaked she was.

I was nearly in pain from need of her, but I wanted her to come in my hand before I sank my cock inside. I pulled her panties off and bent her knees so I could slip my fingers into her folds. She cried out when my thumb rubbed against her clitoris and moaned my name when my index and middle finger slid into her hot core.