3 years without s**
It was a good thing the next day was Saturday because after a horrible night spent alternately sighs and staring at the ceiling, Dara slept late and rose still feeling tired, her eyes heavy-lidded, her movements slow
She forced herself to do her routine chores, then that afternoon flopped down on the sofa, too tired and uninterested to tackle anything else.
She needed to shop for groceries but simply couldn't face the hassle. A quick mental inventory of her cabinets reassured her that she wouldn't starve, at least not for the weekend, she was sure today she'd be sure that nothing had happened, that it was a joke, maybe his childish way of trying to make her feel welcome as Cao's friend, after all, she should know better, Cao always said that he was an idiot with a twisted sense of humor
The doorbell rang, and she got up, answering the summons without thinking. As soon as she opened the door and looked up into that person's face, a feeling of despair settled on her shoulders.
Why couldn't he have waited until Monday? She'd have recovered by then and wouldn't be at such a terrible disadvantage.
She didn't even have the comfort of being properly dressed. Her long hair was loose and hanging down her back; her jeans were old, tight, and faded; and the oversize jersey she wore probably revealed the fact that she was bra-less.
She fought the urge to cross her arms protectively over her chest, even when his eyes dropped to survey her from her bare feet, all the way up to her face, which she remembered she hadn't have washed up
- Aren't you gonna ask me in?
She didn't extend a verbal invitation; she couldn't. Instead, she stepped back and opened the door, and he moved past her into the room.
He was dressed casually, and it made him look even younger to manage a company or even get married, she shook her head
- Have a seat- she invited, finally controlling her voice enough to speak. He sat down on the sofa, and she seated herself across from him in an over-size armchair, unable to make polite chitchat, just waiting for him to break the tension by speaking
He didn't seem aware of any tension, Lay had been taken too much by surprise by her appearance, she looked very young, very relaxed, and very sexy in those comfortable old clothes, it was rare for him to know a woman that could wear an old basketball jersey, with such casual elegance, and just the other day when she was sitting in front of him looking at him stoic he was wondering if she ever gets hot, mussed or fidgetily, well she was and for some reason she looked overwhelming.
He'd thought of how she'd look if he'd had her in bed with him, that hair on her pale silk skin, tangled by the wildness of their passion, her mouth red and swollen from his kisses, her slim body dewy with perspiration.
His own body had suddenly become taut, swollen with need, and he'd had to turn away to disguise his condition.
« Get your head on the game Yixing»
Dara waited but he just looked at her strangely, and when the silence started to become awkward, she decided to say something just to break it
- Umh, why are you here- she said clearing her throat, that took him from his amazement
- Have you thought about what we talked yesterday?
- I did
- And
- I realized that Cao was right, you have an awful sense of humor
- I wasn't joking, I'm serious.
- Why me, you have all the women of the world, why me?
- Let's have dinner, and I'll tell you the details.
- Why bother, you're already here, talk
- Please, Dara, you are Cao's friend.
- Yes, I'm Cao's friend, and I'll worry about her pride when she needs it.
- Be my friend then
- Friend, yours?!- she said pensively-can I think about it
He sat there for a moment; then her words sank in and he closed his eyes in relief. What if she'd refused? In a way he couldn't understand, it had become vital to him that she not freeze him out.
She was right, he could have anyone he wanted, but for some reason, he started to think that he could only trust her to help him.
He looked around the condo and was again surprised. There were no glass or chrome, only comfortable textures and soothing colors. Her furniture was all sturdy and overstuffed, inviting to a tired body. He wanted to stretch out on her sofa, which was long enough to accommodate his long legs, and watch a basketball game on television while idly munching on freshly popped, salty popcorn, with a can of frosty beer in his hand. The room was that soothing, that comfortable. This was where she let her hair down, literally, he thought.
- I like your house- he said, his eyes on her.
- it's not mine
- if you help me, you can have a house and anything you want
- I am not a prostitute, I am not selling myself to gain monetary benefits
- And I didn't say that, and why was that your first idea, actresses, and models sell image too, pretend to be something that they are not and are paid for it, and they are not even called prostitutes, and they can do it for everyone and to anyone to see and you will only do it with and for me- Dara googled her eyes red, the way that idiot put things, he saw her look - oh, right, well maybe secrecy can make things difference- he misunderstood her worries- Um, you're right, it kind sounds fishy
«Really, this guy, at least if I marry him I can be sure it will have some fun moments» she shook her head, she shouldn't be even having regard to the proposal
She'd grown up in a home that had provided physical comfort but left her out in the cold when it came to love.
The house had been immaculate, and "done" to perfection by a hideously expensive interior decorator, but the coldness of it had made Dara shiver, and she'd made excuses, even as a child, to escape it.
The coldness had reflected the hostility of the man and woman who lived there, each of them so bitter at being trapped in a loveless marriage that there had been no warmth or laughter for the child who, though innocent, had been the chain that held them together.
When they finally divorced, only a few weeks after Dara had entered college, it had been a relief for all three of them. She'd never been close to her parents, and since the divorce, Dara had drifted even farther from them.
Her mother had remarried and lived in England; her father had also remarried, moved on with his life, and was now, at fifty-two, the doting father of a two-year-old daughter.
The only example of warm home-life Dara had known was that provided by Nya, first with her parents, then with the house, she'd made with her.
Nya had had the gift of love, a warm outpouring of affection that had drawn people to her.
With her, Dara had laughed and teased, and done all of the normal things that a teenage girl did.
« She didn't want an empty marriage, even if it was a fake one»
Suddenly she collected her manners and scrambled to her feet
- I'm sorry. Would you like something to drink? - His eyebrows rose in question.
- I don't suppose you have beer?- he asked softly, not taking his eyes off her.
Despite herself, she chuckled at the question.
She'd never bought beer in her life;
- No, you're out of luck. Your choice is limited to a soft drink, water, tea or milk, ah, right, we still have the rest of the red wine Cao brought from new years eve
His eyebrows rose at that
- No Cass?
- I'm not much of a drinker. My metabolism cannot handle it and we found out in college that Nya is the world's cheapest drunk, so we don't buy alcoholic drinks
When she smiled, her face took on an animation that made him catch his breath, he shifted uncomfortably. Damn! Now everything she did made him think of sex.
- I think I'll pass on a drink but you have to have dinner with me- she was going to say no, but that moment her stomach show it's perfect timing by growl reminding her that she didn't have anything to eat- he chuckled
- Why are you laughing
- You're hungry but you're trying to act cool
- I wasn't, «trying to act cool», I just forgot
- What you forgot you were hungry?
- Don't look at me like I'm crazy and no I'm not starving myself, I just forgot to eat, I had too much on my head thanks to you
- Oh, you're thinking on me
- I won't dignify that with an answer.- this time he laughed out loud, a genuine laugh that made his dark eyes dance with light.
Dara caught her breath, It was unfair a man to be beautiful, not sexy or handsome, really beautiful, he looked like a woman so beautiful he was...
- Can you at least listen to my proposal?
We'll do that, I'll invite you to dinner, but it'll be late because I'll have to go shopping first."
- You never lose, seriously, it's just dinner.
- Dinner to explain why I should agree to marry you, I'd rather do it at home where no one sees us, and start another problem.
- Lol, you're right, that means you're going to accept
- No, that is to say, as Cao's Friend, and as an hotel worker, it is my duty to at least listen to you
They went shopping but Dara refused to give importance or to admit that it was good to have someone pushing the cart for her instead, usually, she pushed while Nya chose things cheaper or in a buy one take two promotion...
- My mother is going to have a stroke if she finds out that you do it like this- he said as she took the pasta from the pan and dripped water and put it back in the pan, to Bang Minah, if you were going to cook, you had to do it the right way, so all her children knew that if you cook spaghetti or any kind of pasta you have to take it from the hot water pass through cold water, then shock it to prevent it from continuing to cook
- Do what, like? - He bit his tongue, he was trying to get her to marry him and it was not comparing her cooking with his mother that would get it to happen
- Nothing, you're sure you do not need help.
- I never said I did not need to, you want to help, you know how to cook?- she asked hopefully.
- Put the table and I'll take care of the rest.- he said
- Where do we live?
- My house
- Which one?
- The one I am now, but you can choose other places if you want
- What would be my functions?
- As my wife, you just need to show you love me, no one is going to bother you, you can still working, have your friends your life isn't going to change that much
- Do I have to accompany you in some of these meetings with people who want to show that they are richer or more powerful than you?- Lay chuckled
- Yes, sometimes you'll play hostess to my business associates
- Who do you really need to show that you are stable?
- Stable is a strange choice of word
- What do you need to protect?
- The Macau business- he said without hesitation
- What's your worry
- You know the owner of the PRISM group.
- Yes, he is the intermediary between the Macau government and our group - he liked the way she said "our"
- Yes, the other day I went to his daughter's birthday, and she interpreted my gift wrongly and thinks I'm interested in her, it's not funny- he said when Dara's lips tightened.
- Karma, the way you treat woman, now you have a problem because of one?
- What, I'm not that kind, and she's not a woman, she's a girl with some really big issues
- Yeah right
- I swear, she must have some mental problem, but I don't know how to deal with her or as a matter of fact talk with her father about
- So you need a shield
- Exactly, Macau is my first big project after my fathers retirement, the partners want results, and one of the reasons they are always annoying me is because of my personal life, I'm 27 years old, I'm new, I am allowed to see things differently from my father or them, but they think that at that age my father had already achieved many things, even had his own company despite of being my grandfathers heir
- You will always be compared to your father
- That's given, a consummate fact, I don't care, if it has to be, be it with him, but I want to stand on my own too, and it's not by have a scandal that put on jeopardy all the work I did in my first year, we're still in the middle of negotiations with a group of Macau to broaden our group and invest outside and we have to matter somehow, especially now that we are dealing with very high-end clients, and I have the company's reputation to protect, if I can't even protect my personal matters, how am I supposed to run a billion dollar project
- For how long you need to be...
- At least three years
- That much?
- Our marriage cannot be questioned, nor your friend or Cao should know that this is not true
- And your friends
- Neither they, you I, and nobody else
An odd expression crossed her face. Her features tightened
- Don't think it like that
- So how do you want me to think about it?
- We're going to marry, you're not going to sell your body or anything else it's just a bargain if we think it carefully I am the one selling myself for the position, 3 years anything you ask is just the price I need to pay to protect my reputation and pride...
- Can't we just pretend to be engaged until she forgets you- he tried to hide the smile, it was almost like she'd accepted already
- I don't know how crazy she is, and brake an engagement isn't the best way to show stability, and now that we are at it, the ceremony is going to be for real.
- Sorry, I really can not, Couldn't work. We'd fight constantly, I can't stand you, you are annoying, childish
- Thanks, for think of me, and don't forget snobbish
- What
- Nevermind, I'll pay you, I'll pay any amount of money you want.
- What, you think I'm some kind of
- No, not like that, but, there must be something we can bargain with something you want, I can give you or anyone you want anything
- Why you said, anyone
- I heard Nya has debts and
- Can you take care of that?
- Sure and ensure that her business stays stable
Dara nibbled on her bottom lip. Thought about it for one second, as a businessman he knew when he was almost winning a negotiation, he knew when he needed to back down and when to keep pushing, and her expression told him, he was almost there, he just needed a little
- And, and, we wouldn't have to fight because we wouldn't have a real marriage, so we won't have real problems, we wouldn't even have to sleep with each other, Separate bedrooms. we'll never have to touch each other in private if you don't want to...
- And you can go without sex for 3 years?
- Umh, what?
It was a good thing the next day was Saturday because after a horrible night spent alternately sighs and staring at the ceiling, Dara slept late and rose still feeling tired, her eyes heavy-lidded, her movements slow
She forced herself to do her routine chores, then that afternoon flopped down on the sofa, too tired and uninterested to tackle anything else.
She needed to shop for groceries but simply couldn't face the hassle. A quick mental inventory of her cabinets reassured her that she wouldn't starve, at least not for the weekend, she was sure today she'd be sure that nothing had happened, that it was a joke, maybe his childish way of trying to make her feel welcome as Cao's friend, after all, she should know better, Cao always said that he was an idiot with a twisted sense of humor
The doorbell rang, and she got up, answering the summons without thinking. As soon as she opened the door and looked up into that person's face, a feeling of despair settled on her shoulders.
Why couldn't he have waited until Monday? She'd have recovered by then and wouldn't be at such a terrible disadvantage.
She didn't even have the comfort of being properly dressed. Her long hair was loose and hanging down her back; her jeans were old, tight, and faded; and the oversize jersey she wore probably revealed the fact that she was bra-less.
She fought the urge to cross her arms protectively over her chest, even when his eyes dropped to survey her from her bare feet, all the way up to her face, which she remembered she hadn't have washed up
- Aren't you gonna ask me in?
She didn't extend a verbal invitation; she couldn't. Instead, she stepped back and opened the door, and he moved past her into the room.
He was dressed casually, and it made him look even younger to manage a company or even get married, she shook her head
- Have a seat- she invited, finally controlling her voice enough to speak. He sat down on the sofa, and she seated herself across from him in an over-size armchair, unable to make polite chitchat, just waiting for him to break the tension by speaking
He didn't seem aware of any tension, Lay had been taken too much by surprise by her appearance, she looked very young, very relaxed, and very sexy in those comfortable old clothes, it was rare for him to know a woman that could wear an old basketball jersey, with such casual elegance, and just the other day when she was sitting in front of him looking at him stoic he was wondering if she ever gets hot, mussed or fidgetily, well she was and for some reason she looked overwhelming.
He'd thought of how she'd look if he'd had her in bed with him, that hair on her pale silk skin, tangled by the wildness of their passion, her mouth red and swollen from his kisses, her slim body dewy with perspiration.
His own body had suddenly become taut, swollen with need, and he'd had to turn away to disguise his condition.
« Get your head on the game Yixing»
Dara waited but he just looked at her strangely, and when the silence started to become awkward, she decided to say something just to break it
- Umh, why are you here- she said clearing her throat, that took him from his amazement
- Have you thought about what we talked yesterday?
- I did
- And
- I realized that Cao was right, you have an awful sense of humor
- I wasn't joking, I'm serious.
- Why me, you have all the women of the world, why me?
- Let's have dinner, and I'll tell you the details.
- Why bother, you're already here, talk
- Please, Dara, you are Cao's friend.
- Yes, I'm Cao's friend, and I'll worry about her pride when she needs it.
- Be my friend then
- Friend, yours?!- she said pensively-can I think about it
He sat there for a moment; then her words sank in and he closed his eyes in relief. What if she'd refused? In a way he couldn't understand, it had become vital to him that she not freeze him out.
She was right, he could have anyone he wanted, but for some reason, he started to think that he could only trust her to help him.
He looked around the condo and was again surprised. There were no glass or chrome, only comfortable textures and soothing colors. Her furniture was all sturdy and overstuffed, inviting to a tired body. He wanted to stretch out on her sofa, which was long enough to accommodate his long legs, and watch a basketball game on television while idly munching on freshly popped, salty popcorn, with a can of frosty beer in his hand. The room was that soothing, that comfortable. This was where she let her hair down, literally, he thought.
- I like your house- he said, his eyes on her.
- it's not mine
- if you help me, you can have a house and anything you want
- I am not a prostitute, I am not selling myself to gain monetary benefits
- And I didn't say that, and why was that your first idea, actresses, and models sell image too, pretend to be something that they are not and are paid for it, and they are not even called prostitutes, and they can do it for everyone and to anyone to see and you will only do it with and for me- Dara googled her eyes red, the way that idiot put things, he saw her look - oh, right, well maybe secrecy can make things difference- he misunderstood her worries- Um, you're right, it kind sounds fishy
«Really, this guy, at least if I marry him I can be sure it will have some fun moments» she shook her head, she shouldn't be even having regard to the proposal
She'd grown up in a home that had provided physical comfort but left her out in the cold when it came to love.
The house had been immaculate, and "done" to perfection by a hideously expensive interior decorator, but the coldness of it had made Dara shiver, and she'd made excuses, even as a child, to escape it.
The coldness had reflected the hostility of the man and woman who lived there, each of them so bitter at being trapped in a loveless marriage that there had been no warmth or laughter for the child who, though innocent, had been the chain that held them together.
When they finally divorced, only a few weeks after Dara had entered college, it had been a relief for all three of them. She'd never been close to her parents, and since the divorce, Dara had drifted even farther from them.
Her mother had remarried and lived in England; her father had also remarried, moved on with his life, and was now, at fifty-two, the doting father of a two-year-old daughter.
The only example of warm home-life Dara had known was that provided by Nya, first with her parents, then with the house, she'd made with her.
Nya had had the gift of love, a warm outpouring of affection that had drawn people to her.
With her, Dara had laughed and teased, and done all of the normal things that a teenage girl did.
« She didn't want an empty marriage, even if it was a fake one»
Suddenly she collected her manners and scrambled to her feet
- I'm sorry. Would you like something to drink? - His eyebrows rose in question.
- I don't suppose you have beer?- he asked softly, not taking his eyes off her.
Despite herself, she chuckled at the question.
She'd never bought beer in her life;
- No, you're out of luck. Your choice is limited to a soft drink, water, tea or milk, ah, right, we still have the rest of the red wine Cao brought from new years eve
His eyebrows rose at that
- No Cass?
- I'm not much of a drinker. My metabolism cannot handle it and we found out in college that Nya is the world's cheapest drunk, so we don't buy alcoholic drinks
When she smiled, her face took on an animation that made him catch his breath, he shifted uncomfortably. Damn! Now everything she did made him think of sex.
- I think I'll pass on a drink but you have to have dinner with me- she was going to say no, but that moment her stomach show it's perfect timing by growl reminding her that she didn't have anything to eat- he chuckled
- Why are you laughing
- You're hungry but you're trying to act cool
- I wasn't, «trying to act cool», I just forgot
- What you forgot you were hungry?
- Don't look at me like I'm crazy and no I'm not starving myself, I just forgot to eat, I had too much on my head thanks to you
- Oh, you're thinking on me
- I won't dignify that with an answer.- this time he laughed out loud, a genuine laugh that made his dark eyes dance with light.
Dara caught her breath, It was unfair a man to be beautiful, not sexy or handsome, really beautiful, he looked like a woman so beautiful he was...
- Can you at least listen to my proposal?
We'll do that, I'll invite you to dinner, but it'll be late because I'll have to go shopping first."
- You never lose, seriously, it's just dinner.
- Dinner to explain why I should agree to marry you, I'd rather do it at home where no one sees us, and start another problem.
- Lol, you're right, that means you're going to accept
- No, that is to say, as Cao's Friend, and as an hotel worker, it is my duty to at least listen to you
They went shopping but Dara refused to give importance or to admit that it was good to have someone pushing the cart for her instead, usually, she pushed while Nya chose things cheaper or in a buy one take two promotion...
- My mother is going to have a stroke if she finds out that you do it like this- he said as she took the pasta from the pan and dripped water and put it back in the pan, to Bang Minah, if you were going to cook, you had to do it the right way, so all her children knew that if you cook spaghetti or any kind of pasta you have to take it from the hot water pass through cold water, then shock it to prevent it from continuing to cook
- Do what, like? - He bit his tongue, he was trying to get her to marry him and it was not comparing her cooking with his mother that would get it to happen
- Nothing, you're sure you do not need help.
- I never said I did not need to, you want to help, you know how to cook?- she asked hopefully.
- Put the table and I'll take care of the rest.- he said
- Where do we live?
- My house
- Which one?
- The one I am now, but you can choose other places if you want
- What would be my functions?
- As my wife, you just need to show you love me, no one is going to bother you, you can still working, have your friends your life isn't going to change that much
- Do I have to accompany you in some of these meetings with people who want to show that they are richer or more powerful than you?- Lay chuckled
- Yes, sometimes you'll play hostess to my business associates
- Who do you really need to show that you are stable?
- Stable is a strange choice of word
- What do you need to protect?
- The Macau business- he said without hesitation
- What's your worry
- You know the owner of the PRISM group.
- Yes, he is the intermediary between the Macau government and our group - he liked the way she said "our"
- Yes, the other day I went to his daughter's birthday, and she interpreted my gift wrongly and thinks I'm interested in her, it's not funny- he said when Dara's lips tightened.
- Karma, the way you treat woman, now you have a problem because of one?
- What, I'm not that kind, and she's not a woman, she's a girl with some really big issues
- Yeah right
- I swear, she must have some mental problem, but I don't know how to deal with her or as a matter of fact talk with her father about
- So you need a shield
- Exactly, Macau is my first big project after my fathers retirement, the partners want results, and one of the reasons they are always annoying me is because of my personal life, I'm 27 years old, I'm new, I am allowed to see things differently from my father or them, but they think that at that age my father had already achieved many things, even had his own company despite of being my grandfathers heir
- You will always be compared to your father
- That's given, a consummate fact, I don't care, if it has to be, be it with him, but I want to stand on my own too, and it's not by have a scandal that put on jeopardy all the work I did in my first year, we're still in the middle of negotiations with a group of Macau to broaden our group and invest outside and we have to matter somehow, especially now that we are dealing with very high-end clients, and I have the company's reputation to protect, if I can't even protect my personal matters, how am I supposed to run a billion dollar project
- For how long you need to be...
- At least three years
- That much?
- Our marriage cannot be questioned, nor your friend or Cao should know that this is not true
- And your friends
- Neither they, you I, and nobody else
An odd expression crossed her face. Her features tightened
- Don't think it like that
- So how do you want me to think about it?
- We're going to marry, you're not going to sell your body or anything else it's just a bargain if we think it carefully I am the one selling myself for the position, 3 years anything you ask is just the price I need to pay to protect my reputation and pride...
- Can't we just pretend to be engaged until she forgets you- he tried to hide the smile, it was almost like she'd accepted already
- I don't know how crazy she is, and brake an engagement isn't the best way to show stability, and now that we are at it, the ceremony is going to be for real.
- Sorry, I really can not, Couldn't work. We'd fight constantly, I can't stand you, you are annoying, childish
- Thanks, for think of me, and don't forget snobbish
- What
- Nevermind, I'll pay you, I'll pay any amount of money you want.
- What, you think I'm some kind of
- No, not like that, but, there must be something we can bargain with something you want, I can give you or anyone you want anything
- Why you said, anyone
- I heard Nya has debts and
- Can you take care of that?
- Sure and ensure that her business stays stable
Dara nibbled on her bottom lip. Thought about it for one second, as a businessman he knew when he was almost winning a negotiation, he knew when he needed to back down and when to keep pushing, and her expression told him, he was almost there, he just needed a little
- And, and, we wouldn't have to fight because we wouldn't have a real marriage, so we won't have real problems, we wouldn't even have to sleep with each other, Separate bedrooms. we'll never have to touch each other in private if you don't want to...
- And you can go without sex for 3 years?
- Umh, what?
It was a good thing the next day was Saturday because after a horrible night spent alternately sighs and staring at the ceiling, Dara slept late and rose still feeling tired, her eyes heavy-lidded, her movements slow
She forced herself to do her routine chores, then that afternoon flopped down on the sofa, too tired and uninterested to tackle anything else.
She needed to shop for groceries but simply couldn't face the hassle. A quick mental inventory of her cabinets reassured her that she wouldn't starve, at least not for the weekend, she was sure today she'd be sure that nothing had happened, that it was a joke, maybe his childish way of trying to make her feel welcome as Cao's friend, after all, she should know better, Cao always said that he was an idiot with a twisted sense of humor
The doorbell rang, and she got up, answering the summons without thinking. As soon as she opened the door and looked up into that person's face, a feeling of despair settled on her shoulders.
Why couldn't he have waited until Monday? She'd have recovered by then and wouldn't be at such a terrible disadvantage.
She didn't even have the comfort of being properly dressed. Her long hair was loose and hanging down her back; her jeans were old, tight, and faded; and the oversize jersey she wore probably revealed the fact that she was bra-less.
She fought the urge to cross her arms protectively over her chest, even when his eyes dropped to survey her from her bare feet, all the way up to her face, which she remembered she hadn't have washed up
- Aren't you gonna ask me in?
She didn't extend a verbal invitation; she couldn't. Instead, she stepped back and opened the door, and he moved past her into the room.
He was dressed casually, and it made him look even younger to manage a company or even get married, she shook her head
- Have a seat- she invited, finally controlling her voice enough to speak. He sat down on the sofa, and she seated herself across from him in an over-size armchair, unable to make polite chitchat, just waiting for him to break the tension by speaking
He didn't seem aware of any tension, Lay had been taken too much by surprise by her appearance, she looked very young, very relaxed, and very sexy in those comfortable old clothes, it was rare for him to know a woman that could wear an old basketball jersey, with such casual elegance, and just the other day when she was sitting in front of him looking at him stoic he was wondering if she ever gets hot, mussed or fidgetily, well she was and for some reason she looked overwhelming.
He'd thought of how she'd look if he'd had her in bed with him, that hair on her pale silk skin, tangled by the wildness of their passion, her mouth red and swollen from his kisses, her slim body dewy with perspiration.
His own body had suddenly become taut, swollen with need, and he'd had to turn away to disguise his condition.
« Get your head on the game Yixing»
Dara waited but he just looked at her strangely, and when the silence started to become awkward, she decided to say something just to break it
- Umh, why are you here- she said clearing her throat, that took him from his amazement
- Have you thought about what we talked yesterday?
- I did
- And
- I realized that Cao was right, you have an awful sense of humor
- I wasn't joking, I'm serious.
- Why me, you have all the women of the world, why me?
- Let's have dinner, and I'll tell you the details.
- Why bother, you're already here, talk
- Please, Dara, you are Cao's friend.
- Yes, I'm Cao's friend, and I'll worry about her pride when she needs it.
- Be my friend then
- Friend, yours?!- she said pensively-can I think about it
He sat there for a moment; then her words sank in and he closed his eyes in relief. What if she'd refused? In a way he couldn't understand, it had become vital to him that she not freeze him out.
She was right, he could have anyone he wanted, but for some reason, he started to think that he could only trust her to help him.
He looked around the condo and was again surprised. There were no glass or chrome, only comfortable textures and soothing colors. Her furniture was all sturdy and overstuffed, inviting to a tired body. He wanted to stretch out on her sofa, which was long enough to accommodate his long legs, and watch a basketball game on television while idly munching on freshly popped, salty popcorn, with a can of frosty beer in his hand. The room was that soothing, that comfortable. This was where she let her hair down, literally, he thought.
- I like your house- he said, his eyes on her.
- it's not mine
- if you help me, you can have a house and anything you want
- I am not a prostitute, I am not selling myself to gain monetary benefits
- And I didn't say that, and why was that your first idea, actresses, and models sell image too, pretend to be something that they are not and are paid for it, and they are not even called prostitutes, and they can do it for everyone and to anyone to see and you will only do it with and for me- Dara googled her eyes red, the way that idiot put things, he saw her look - oh, right, well maybe secrecy can make things difference- he misunderstood her worries- Um, you're right, it kind sounds fishy
«Really, this guy, at least if I marry him I can be sure it will have some fun moments» she shook her head, she shouldn't be even having regard to the proposal
She'd grown up in a home that had provided physical comfort but left her out in the cold when it came to love.
The house had been immaculate, and "done" to perfection by a hideously expensive interior decorator, but the coldness of it had made Dara shiver, and she'd made excuses, even as a child, to escape it.
The coldness had reflected the hostility of the man and woman who lived there, each of them so bitter at being trapped in a loveless marriage that there had been no warmth or laughter for the child who, though innocent, had been the chain that held them together.
When they finally divorced, only a few weeks after Dara had entered college, it had been a relief for all three of them. She'd never been close to her parents, and since the divorce, Dara had drifted even farther from them.
Her mother had remarried and lived in England; her father had also remarried, moved on with his life, and was now, at fifty-two, the doting father of a two-year-old daughter.
The only example of warm home-life Dara had known was that provided by Nya, first with her parents, then with the house, she'd made with her.
Nya had had the gift of love, a warm outpouring of affection that had drawn people to her.
With her, Dara had laughed and teased, and done all of the normal things that a teenage girl did.
« She didn't want an empty marriage, even if it was a fake one»
Suddenly she collected her manners and scrambled to her feet
- I'm sorry. Would you like something to drink? - His eyebrows rose in question.
- I don't suppose you have beer?- he asked softly, not taking his eyes off her.
Despite herself, she chuckled at the question.
She'd never bought beer in her life;
- No, you're out of luck. Your choice is limited to a soft drink, water, tea or milk, ah, right, we still have the rest of the red wine Cao brought from new years eve
His eyebrows rose at that
- No Cass?
- I'm not much of a drinker. My metabolism cannot handle it and we found out in college that Nya is the world's cheapest drunk, so we don't buy alcoholic drinks
When she smiled, her face took on an animation that made him catch his breath, he shifted uncomfortably. Damn! Now everything she did made him think of sex.
- I think I'll pass on a drink but you have to have dinner with me- she was going to say no, but that moment her stomach show it's perfect timing by growl reminding her that she didn't have anything to eat- he chuckled
- Why are you laughing
- You're hungry but you're trying to act cool
- I wasn't, «trying to act cool», I just forgot
- What you forgot you were hungry?
- Don't look at me like I'm crazy and no I'm not starving myself, I just forgot to eat, I had too much on my head thanks to you
- Oh, you're thinking on me
- I won't dignify that with an answer.- this time he laughed out loud, a genuine laugh that made his dark eyes dance with light.
Dara caught her breath, It was unfair a man to be beautiful, not sexy or handsome, really beautiful, he looked like a woman so beautiful he was...
- Can you at least listen to my proposal?
We'll do that, I'll invite you to dinner, but it'll be late because I'll have to go shopping first."
- You never lose, seriously, it's just dinner.
- Dinner to explain why I should agree to marry you, I'd rather do it at home where no one sees us, and start another problem.
- Lol, you're right, that means you're going to accept
- No, that is to say, as Cao's Friend, and as an hotel worker, it is my duty to at least listen to you
They went shopping but Dara refused to give importance or to admit that it was good to have someone pushing the cart for her instead, usually, she pushed while Nya chose things cheaper or in a buy one take two promotion...
- My mother is going to have a stroke if she finds out that you do it like this- he said as she took the pasta from the pan and dripped water and put it back in the pan, to Bang Minah, if you were going to cook, you had to do it the right way, so all her children knew that if you cook spaghetti or any kind of pasta you have to take it from the hot water pass through cold water, then shock it to prevent it from continuing to cook
- Do what, like? - He bit his tongue, he was trying to get her to marry him and it was not comparing her cooking with his mother that would get it to happen
- Nothing, you're sure you do not need help.
- I never said I did not need to, you want to help, you know how to cook?- she asked hopefully.
- Put the table and I'll take care of the rest.- he said
- Where do we live?
- My house
- Which one?
- The one I am now, but you can choose other places if you want
- What would be my functions?
- As my wife, you just need to show you love me, no one is going to bother you, you can still working, have your friends your life isn't going to change that much
- Do I have to accompany you in some of these meetings with people who want to show that they are richer or more powerful than you?- Lay chuckled
- Yes, sometimes you'll play hostess to my business associates
- Who do you really need to show that you are stable?
- Stable is a strange choice of word
- What do you need to protect?
- The Macau business- he said without hesitation
- What's your worry
- You know the owner of the PRISM group.
- Yes, he is the intermediary between the Macau government and our group - he liked the way she said "our"
- Yes, the other day I went to his daughter's birthday, and she interpreted my gift wrongly and thinks I'm interested in her, it's not funny- he said when Dara's lips tightened.
- Karma, the way you treat woman, now you have a problem because of one?
- What, I'm not that kind, and she's not a woman, she's a girl with some really big issues
- Yeah right
- I swear, she must have some mental problem, but I don't know how to deal with her or as a matter of fact talk with her father about
- So you need a shield
- Exactly, Macau is my first big project after my fathers retirement, the partners want results, and one of the reasons they are always annoying me is because of my personal life, I'm 27 years old, I'm new, I am allowed to see things differently from my father or them, but they think that at that age my father had already achieved many things, even had his own company despite of being my grandfathers heir
- You will always be compared to your father
- That's given, a consummate fact, I don't care, if it has to be, be it with him, but I want to stand on my own too, and it's not by have a scandal that put on jeopardy all the work I did in my first year, we're still in the middle of negotiations with a group of Macau to broaden our group and invest outside and we have to matter somehow, especially now that we are dealing with very high-end clients, and I have the company's reputation to protect, if I can't even protect my personal matters, how am I supposed to run a billion dollar project
- For how long you need to be...
- At least three years
- That much?
- Our marriage cannot be questioned, nor your friend or Cao should know that this is not true
- And your friends
- Neither they, you I, and nobody else
An odd expression crossed her face. Her features tightened
- Don't think it like that
- So how do you want me to think about it?
- We're going to marry, you're not going to sell your body or anything else it's just a bargain if we think it carefully I am the one selling myself for the position, 3 years anything you ask is just the price I need to pay to protect my reputation and pride...
- Can't we just pretend to be engaged until she forgets you- he tried to hide the smile, it was almost like she'd accepted already
- I don't know how crazy she is, and brake an engagement isn't the best way to show stability, and now that we are at it, the ceremony is going to be for real.
- Sorry, I really can not, Couldn't work. We'd fight constantly, I can't stand you, you are annoying, childish
- Thanks, for think of me, and don't forget snobbish
- What
- Nevermind, I'll pay you, I'll pay any amount of money you want.
- What, you think I'm some kind of
- No, not like that, but, there must be something we can bargain with something you want, I can give you or anyone you want anything
- Why you said, anyone
- I heard Nya has debts and
- Can you take care of that?
- Sure and ensure that her business stays stable
Dara nibbled on her bottom lip. Thought about it for one second, as a businessman he knew when he was almost winning a negotiation, he knew when he needed to back down and when to keep pushing, and her expression told him, he was almost there, he just needed a little
- And, and, we wouldn't have to fight because we wouldn't have a real marriage, so we won't have real problems, we wouldn't even have to sleep with each other, Separate bedrooms. we'll never have to touch each other in private if you don't want to...
- And you can go without sex for 3 years?
- Umh, what?