Mr. CEO(129)

“Oh? What was it?” Katrina asks, and I wave her off. “Come on, it can't be that silly.”

“Well, I had a dream that you and I opened a gym together,” I tell her, sipping at the tea. It's horrible, but not as bad as the stuff this morning, maybe because it's still pretty much ice cold and a lot of the sweetness is numbed. “You taught women how to kick ass like you do, and I taught people how to get ripped. Oh, and you taught me some of your tricks.”

“You seem to have a pretty natural skill, I don't think you need the Touches,” Katrina jokes.

“Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t mind feeling them again,” I say, grinning.



I'm lying in bed after reading for the past hour and trying to get my mind on anything other than today's events. Going to Katrina's parents' apartment, the beat down, and running away are part of it, but instead, my mind wants to go back to the feeling of her in my arms, the way she felt when we kissed, and the desire that flowed through me the rest of the day.

I look over at Katrina, who's sleeping, her lips slightly parted, so soft and kissable...

“Shit,” I mutter, lying back on my side of the bed. I can't get up and go to the bathroom to beat off, that’s fucking shameful. I haven't had to beat off to alleviate blue balls since... well, ever. At least I'm not standing at attention right this second, although my cock is awake and telling me all sorts of things it would like to do right now.

I close my eyes, hoping that maybe I can get some sleep, and maybe I do drift off, because the next thing I’m aware of is a light Touch on my forearm, sending warm sparks through me, and I hum slightly. “Mmm...”

“Shh,” Katrina whispers in my ear, her hand touching another area, and even though I'm in a fantasy, I know I'm also awake. My eyes open, and I see that Katrina's turned on the little lamp next to her side of the bed, and she's taken off all of her clothes. I blink, making sure I'm not imagining things.

“Katrina?”

“Tonight... I want there to be a future tonight,” she whispers, her voice choked with feeling, and I notice she's pulled the bedspread down, removing the barrier between us. “Tonight... show me what it can be.”

She touches me again, and I'm fully awake, fully aware of what's happening, but still clear-headed, my desire for her completely natural, not manufactured by what she's doing. She leans down, her body sliding over mine, and looks into my eyes. “Katrina...”

“Be my first, Jackson,” she pleads, her eyes filled with emotion. “Be my first real lover.”

I nod, and she lowers her lips the last few inches, and we kiss. What I don't tell her, what I want to tell her, is that I've never had a real lover either, not the way she's talking about anyway. And in that kiss, she's my first as well.





Chapter 23





Kat





When we get back to the hotel after our dinner, I'm torn more than ever. The dinner, the kiss, all of it, I'm feeling different than I have in my entire life. Even telling Jackson earlier that with him, I feel like there's a chance at a future, it's not enough.

The reality is that when I'm with Jackson, not only do I feel like I have a future, but I feel regret. I feel regret about the past ten years, and the senseless bullshit that drove me to what I've become. I want those ten years back, those years that I should have spent doing normal girl things, like having my first kiss with Jackson like I'd wanted when I was twelve.

We get ready for bed casually, like there's no tension between us, but I can feel it in the air. It's in the way he lies in bed trying to read, but spending ten minutes on a single page before turning to the next, and in the way he keeps glancing over at me every time I move. When I switch off the light, I close my eyes to meditate, hoping that maybe by focusing and pretending to go to sleep I can relieve some of this tension. Jackson closes his book and sets it aside after a few minutes, and I can hear him turn over onto his side too, but after a few minutes, he mutters to himself.

“Shit,” he lightly curses, then shifts again. His breathing evens out though, and I think he's drifted off into a light doze, and I open my eyes, turning on my side to look at him. I can't see much, so I turn on the lamp next to my side of the bed, and watch him in the soft light, amazed at how handsome he is. Even in sleep though he's tense, and his lips are constantly moving. It takes me a while, but I realize he's saying my name, although in desire or fright I'm not sure.

I make my decision, knowing that regardless if it's right or wrong, it's necessary. Carefully I get up, and take the rolled-up blanket from between us, then I strip down, taking off everything I'm wearing before stretching out on the bed again. I see his forearm, and I Touch him lightly, his tension easing before he hums, the desire growing inside him. “Mmm...”