Page 42

DEKE

The last thing I wanted to do was leave Davina’s office.

I had the woman of my dreams lying next to me, her warm breath on my skin, and her scent still on my mouth. She was next to me on a futon floor mattress that’d been crammed into one of her closets.

As I’d helped her haul it out (after having my way with her several times), she’d informed me that she’d gotten the mattress when she and Tisha had to stay overnight in her previous office.

It was around the time her products went viral, and since it was such a big moment for her company, she didn’t want to risk going home and missing out on something. It was a pivotal point in her career, so I completely understood that.

She’d told me the story about how she stuck around the building to make sure orders were fulfilled and packages were neatly curated. It was nice knowing she cared about her business. Most people’s hearts aren’t invested in what they do. They just do it for the sake of a check or attention, but not Davina. She loved GOC from the bottom of her heart, and that passion radiated from her.

It was six thirty in the morning. I’d woken up about twenty minutes earlier, when my phone alarm went off, but she didn’t budge a bit. I remained at her side on the mattress, watching as she slept peacefully on her stomach, her arms folded and tucked beneath her head as a makeshift pillow.

Her thick mop of curls covered half her face, and her magenta lips were pouty, begging me to kiss them. She was still naked from the night before, with only a blanket covering her butt and thighs.

I sat up and stared out the window as the sun slowly made its debut. It was so quiet in this office. So serene. I didn’t want to leave ... but I’d already made an obligation, so I had to be there. Plus, Arnold would’ve flipped his shit if I didn’t show. If I drove back to ATL now, I could pack a quick bag and still make my flight at twelve.

I put my focus on Davina again and brushed some of the hair away from her cheek so I could place a kiss there. I wanted to wake her up but remembered her telling me how she’d been restless the last couple of months. At this moment, she was sleeping like a baby.

As much as I wanted to kiss her mouth, then trail kisses down her naked body until my tongue woke her up, I didn’t. I had no doubt I’d have another chance to do what I really wanted soon enough. Instead, I went to her desk, grabbed a loose sheet of paper and a pen, and left a quick note.

Before I walked out the door, I stopped and took one last look at her. As I watched her, something expanded in my chest like the swelling of a hot-air balloon. The heat was rising, the flames growing, filling the hollowness of my heart with warmth. Everything in me wanted to stay and hold her a few seconds longer.

This woman was doing strange things to me—things I couldn’t explain or understand—but there was one thing I knew for certain.

Davina Klein had all of me. Every cell, every breath, every heartbeat—she had it all.

She just didn’t know it yet.