My Asian Lover (Interracial BWAM Romance Book 1) (4 page)

             
“A side gig? Honey, don't you think you've got enough work going on already that you need a side gig too?” Gina asked.

             
“Well, it's not like I'm gonna work in goddamn HR for the rest of my life.” Taunya said, instantly wishing she could take her words back.

             
“Well, excuuuse me.” Gina said, hurt. After all, it was Gina who had gotten Taunya the temp job at Systyx all those years ago. Taunya had her to thank for the years of steady employment and simultaneous misery.

             
“Sorry.” she began. “But I feel like sometimes there's just something else I'd rather be doing.” she admitted.              

             
“So this interior decorating thing? You're serious about it?” Gina asked.

             
“I don't know.” Taunya answered, “But I'll never know until I try.”

             
Gina sighed and looked at her overworked friend.

             
“Just be careful out there, girl. Strange men just love preying on beautiful girls like you – And by the way, killer outfit! I'm around if you need to make an emergency call or something. I'll see you at the office on Monday.” The two women parted ways. It was already three thirty in the afternoon, leaving Taunya only a half hour to get to Mike's in time and meet her destiny.

             
She raced down the street in her luxury car, thanking the lord for a built-in GPS to guide her and supple leather seats to melt into. She pulled up to the condo complex and looked at the impossibly ornate building. She could see a doorman standing at the glass doors and began to wonder just how important Mike was at his job. This place was, in her words, “ultra swanky” and she hadn't even walked in yet. She sat in her car and bit her nails. She picked up her phone and stared at the time: three fifty five. Rather than risk being late and looking like a flake, she picked up the phone and dialed Mike's number.  Her heart pounded in her chest as the phone rang. She looked down at the jagged fingernail that she had created out of a nervous habit and cursed herself for forgetting an emory board for her purse. Mike picked up:

             
“This is Mike.” came the voice from the other end of the line.

             
“Yes, um...this is Taunya. I'm here for the – she cleared her throat – design consultation.” she replied.              

             
“Oh, yes.” said the voice, now in a more sensual tone. “I'll be right down.”

             
Taunya gulped and imagined just how wonderful he would look in the light of day. She got out of her car and waited at the door, smiling at the doorman and hoping she didn't look too nervous. Mike did not disappoint in that afternoon's outfit. He was dressed in black slacks held up by suspenders and a white button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Black loafers completed the look and his beautiful black hair glistened in the afternoon sun. He smiled at Taunya and shook her hand. Once again, she fell prey to his grasp and hope that she would be able to maintain her composure for the rest of the afternoon.

             
“Would you like to come upstairs?” he asked. “I live on the very top floor so it's a short elevator ride.” he said with a smile.

             
Taunya smiled back, not wanting to break off their handshake and replied, “Yes. I would love to. This is a beautiful building you live in.”

             
“Just wait til you see the bedroom.” he said with a sly grin.

              The lobby of Mike's building smelled of sage and cinnamon, reminding Taunya of Christmases as a child and the rapidly approaching holiday season. She felt instantly at ease as she and Mike got into the large and ornate elevator. There was a mirror on the ceiling and Taunya found herself staring up at their reflection as they rode all the way up to the very top floor, too nervous to make idle conversation. Mike just smiled, watching her get light-headed in the express elevator. Taunya thought of the scene in
Pretty Woman
when Richard Gere's character tells Julia Roberts' character that he always stays in the penthouse because, “It's the best.” She wondered if Mike was anything like Edward Lewis. He certainly had the looks and poise going for him.

             
The elevator stopped at the eighteenth floor and the pair exited, standing in front of a simple door bearing the number “18” done up in gold-colored plastic.

             
“It's not much.” Mike said with a sigh. “All I know is that it needs help and I'm far too busy and clumsy to do it myself.”

             
He opened the door, allowing Taunya to finally see the place for herself. 'Not much?' she thought as she looked around, 'This place is a palace!' It was truly breathtaking. There was a large picture window looking out at the city's skyline. The living room was nearly unfurnished, though, save for a small black leather couch and a jumbo sized flat screen television in the corner. But it was huge and there was an incredible amount of potential that Taunya could see right away. The walls were off white in color and Taunya imagined what a splash of brightness with some paint or wallpaper could do to open up the room even more. To her right was the kitchen area with a large stainless steel refrigerator and stove. The countertops were a beautiful gray granite and there was a small island in the middle of the kitchen for the sink and an overhead apparatus upon which hung upside down wine glasses and a small row of various unused-looking pans. Taunya was nearly dizzy at the vastness of his living area and she hadn't even seen the master bedroom yet.

             
“Would you care for a glass of water?” Mike asked.

             
Taunya was pretty parched. All the coffee that she'd had with Gina only served to make her extra jittery but otherwise had been entirely unhelpful.

             
“Yes please.” she answered, trying not to sound too eager. She was so taken aback by her surroundings that she was almost afraid to speak, lest she give away just how astounded she was at the beautiful space into which she'd been invited. Mike retrieved two glasses from a cabinet and filled them to the brim with ice water. He handed one to Taunya and she sipped it slowly, making sure she didn't gulp it down and seem unladylike. She put her folder full of papers down on the island and smiled.

             
“This is an exquisite place, Mike. I can't imagine that you would need much help to decorate it.” she said.

             
She wondered to herself just how much a place like Mike's might cost. It was obvious that he was more well-off than he'd let on.

             
“So, you work in stocks and bonds. Is that right?” she asked.

             
Mike chuckled and shook his head.

             
“That must have been an old business card that I gave you.” he replied. “I used to do that work, but it was so soul crushing. I'm actually a headhunter now and I really love it. It's very rewarding to be able to recruit talented individuals and place them where they can best succeed. And the pay is great” he said, gesturing to the luxury around him.

             
Taunya nodded. This guy was definitely something out of the ordinary. She put her glass of water down next to the file folder on the island and looked at Mike.

             
“So, let's see this bedroom of yours.” she said, hoping that she was still coming off relatively professional sounding despite her desire to rip his clothing off and fuck him right then and there. It wasn't the money that was attractive to her, but there was definitely something about his confidence that spoke to her.

             
They wandered into the grand bedroom and Taunya looked at the massive four poster bed inside. She thought back to her childhood wish for a canopy bed and imagined what the posts might look like with some light, sheer material draped over them. 'No. Too girly,' she thought. Then she wondered about the possibilities those posts held to serve as a restraint system and imagined herself shackled to the bed while Mike trailed kisses down her quivering body. She shook her head and smiled weakly at Mike. She didn't know it, but she had been blushing pretty profusely and Mike was picking up on it.

             
“This room has a lot of potential.,” she managed to squeak out.              

             
Looking up at the skylight in the center, she thought to herself what the stars at night must look like through it.

             
“I can show you some pictures that I collected online yesterday. I think that a lot of what I researched could be used to make this room even more beautiful,” she continued.

             
“It's certainly more beautiful with you standing in it,” Mike said.

             
Taunya felt her skin flush this time and struggled to maintain her diminishing composure.

             
“I left my folder out in the kitchen. Let's go take a look,” she offered, attempting to save face.

             
The pair wandered back to the kitchen and Taunya picked her glass of water back up, hoping that a few sips might cool down the heat that was building within her. Mike paced the kitchen and watched her. He moved closer to her and picked up the folder that had been sitting on the granite countertop. He flipped through the pages and landed on the picture of the swatch of “Kinky Vintage” wallpaper.              

             
“What a name!” he joked, while Taunya nearly choked on her water. She didn't realize she had included that particular wallpaper into the mix. She was mortified.

             
“Oh...that's for...another project.” she stammered.              

             
“I see. So you're designing rooms for other single, attractive men?” he teased. She blushed even harder and he inched closer to her.

             
“No. It's for my...bed–” her protest was interrupted by a long and intense kiss from Mike. He caressed her cheek and pulled back to look her straight in the eyes.

             
“I know how badly you want this job. I could see the passion within you from the moment you walked into my home,” he said, eyes twinkling, “but I can also tell that you have an ulterior motive in coming here. You may be here for a design job, but you're dressed to kill. In fact, I think my heart skipped a beat when I got a glimpse of your backside in that skirt. I know you want me. And I want you. And I think we should do something about that.”

             
He brushed a stray braid from in front of her face and leaned in for another kiss. She pulled back and shook her head “no”. He put a finger to her lips, silencing her half-hearted attempt at protesting the matter. He wrapped his arms around her waist, leaned in again, and kissed her hard. This time she kissed back, allowing his tongue to roam inside of her mouth and intertwine with hers. She put one hand around his waist and the other on the back of his neck, running her fingers through his thick black hair. He moved one hand up her shirt and began to unbutton it slowly. One button after another popped open with ease to reveal a hot pink lace push-up bra cradling a pair of beautiful ebony breasts. His hands roamed across her chest, and he discarded her blouse on the floor. She moaned as her reached into her brassiere and pinched one of her nipples. She had always loved having it a little rough and she hoped that this was an indication of more to come. He lifted her up onto the granite countertop, taking care not to upset the hanging kitchen items and wine glasses. With one hand, he unhooked her bra and eased the straps down around her shoulders. Taunya was reminded briefly of being caught
in flagrante delicto
with James some time ago with her lingerie barely covering her, but banished the thought from her mind for good as she felt Mike sucking on her nipples and biting one ever so gently. His fingernails cascaded down her back and she shivered at the sensation. It had been far too long since she'd been touched like this and she intended to savor every moment of the unprofessional scene that was unfolding around her.

             
She tugged his suspenders off of his shoulders until they hung around his waist and pulled him closer by the collar of his crisp white shirt. She unbuttoned it with fervor and let it fall to the ground, joining her shirt. Exploring underneath the dress shirt revealed a rippled chest covered by a tight white undershirt. They kissed fiercely and she let her fingers flick against his hard nipples through the shirt. It was all she could do not to grab a knife from the knife block next to her and slice it clean off of him.               He reached into the nearby glass of ice water and pulled out a small cube of ice. Her bra was now down around her arms, freeing her breasts from their lace-laden prison. He rubbed one of her nipples with the ice cube and felt her shudder under his hands. He continued to the other nipple and she stifled another moan. He brought the rapidly melting ice cube to her lips and she sucked on it until it was gone. She continued sucking on his finger and gazed intently into his eyes. She may have been hesitant at first, but she was surely into it now. 'Fuck professionalism,' she thought. 'I need this.'

             
She let her bra hit the ground, joining the rest of the discarded clothing and started work on the pesky undershirt that stood between her and his delectable chest. She tugged at it, but it was far too tight to be removed with that kind of ease. She cursed inwardly and they continued to kiss feverishly. Her hands scrambled underneath the shirt and she tweaked one of his nipples. He moaned softly into her mouth as he kissed her and began rolling her skirt up over her legs. He reach underneath and grabbed hold of the waistband of her pantyhose. Rather than succumb to the same hesitation Taunya had faced, Mike grabbed a nearby knife and, pulling the tights away from her leg, cut a tiny hole at the top of the sheer fabric. He reached in with two fingers and pulled until it ripped from her thigh down to her knee. She didn't even care that her clothes were being ruined just as long as she was able to be separated from them to allow Mike all the access that he would want. He cut a hole in the stockings at the knee of her other leg and let the knife run up to her waistband. He pulled the shredded material down her legs and, with a few more slices, she was free. He pulled her off of the counter and turned her around, going for the zipper of her pencil skirt. He pulled it off of her and there she stood in nothing but a pair of pink lace panties and oxford heels. He, on the other hand, was far too dressed still for Taunya's liking. She turned around and went for the undershirt again, this time being forceful enough to pull it up over his head, messing his hair slightly and serving only to make him look that much more gorgeous in her eyes. She practically drooled at the sight of his smooth, pale chest. She leaned in and sucked on one of his nipples and he responded by reaching down and tweaking one of hers. She bent down, grabbed at his belt, and undid it furiously, desperate to reveal the cock that she could feel straining against his slacks. She undid his pants and they hit the floor, suspenders and belt clanking against the hard wood. Underneath those slacks her wore a pair of tight black boxer briefs with a waistband that read “Calvin Klein” all around it. She ran her hand over the growing bulge in his briefs and he grunted in appreciation. She got down on her knees and shimmied the underwear down his legs to find a large, hard cock standing at attention in front of her. It was just as handsome as she imagined it would be, thick and firm in her grasp as she stroked. She encased it in her warm mouth and he fisted a hand into her braided hair in response, guiding her head back and forth as pre-cum dripped from his head down her throat. She savored the taste and continued to slowly suck him off, letting her tongue swirl around his head and then down his shaft. She took him all the way in the back of her throat and he felt as if he could hardly contain himself. Her mouth was gentle but dutiful as she continued to suck.

             
He was teetering on the edge of orgasm and decided that enough was enough. He stood her up and turned her around once again, bending her over the counter and pulling her panties down around her ankles. With her movement inhibited, she struggled to keep balance in her heels, hating herself for having about as much grace as that of a baby giraffe just learning to stand. She regained her composure and arched her back, leaving her ass accessible and exposing her pussy, which was dripping wet. He ran a finger along the wetness pooling on her thighs and brought it to his lips. It was, to him, as if she tasted like honey and he wanted more. He plunged a finger inside her cunt and she ground her hips back against him. This time, he wanted her to taste herself. He reached in front of her and brought his finger to her lips. She had never much liked the way she smelled or tasted, but there was something overpoweringly erotic about the glistening finger that he held in front of her mouth. She drooled at the sight and lapped up her wetness with a hunger only matched by his desire to fuck her in a way that would exceed her wildest dreams – a goal to which he was already off to a very good start at achieving. He reached back dow between her legs and toyed with her increasingly sensitive clit. Her legs quivered at his touch. If this wasn't enough to catch her off balance, Taunya was not sure what could be. She groaned as he continued to play with her pussy and her knees nearly buckled when he put two fingers inside of her to explore her wet depths. As his fingers were vigorously fucking her senseless, he leaned over and kissed her neck, biting the spot where her neck met her shoulder and causing her to scream. He pumped in and out of her and she got closer to the edge with each thrust. She bit her lip.