The Russian Billionaire’s Secret(41)

“Well, I’m not sure I have much of one, or one that is really all that exciting. I grew up with a mother and a father, in an incredible neighborhood with a tremendous education system. I went to Duke, always knowing that I would take over my father’s business one day. My story, in all honesty, is filled with opportunity that was handed to me, that I know most people don’t get. I am not ashamed by it, but it’s not as impressive as yours.”

She loved his honesty, his ability to be both privileged but aware of the fact that most people weren’t given these opportunities, and to acknowledge someone who had less than him; these things made him stick out to her during the nights she couldn’t sleep, and she found herself imagining what it would feel like to kiss his full lips, their hands embracing one another, bulldozing social class and race barriers.

She caught him glancing at her at times in a way that made her heart flutter. She saw the way the other women looked at him around the office, but he didn’t seem to acknowledge them at all. He looked at her physically, and acknowledged her emotionally and professionally, in ways he didn’t do for anyone else.

She found herself, at night, fantasizing about the two of them making love in his office, his broad chest above her, her laying across his glass desk, his sweaty hands leaving prints on either side of her head on the desk. She imagined his dark eyes peering down into hers, those wisps of hair falling over them, as he guided himself inside of her, her inching her skirt higher and higher, wrapping her legs around his pelvis.

“We’ve been working hard for quite some time,” he voiced later that night. She had nodded in complete agreement. “Maybe it’s time for us to go out and treat ourselves…celebrate all the success we’ve had since you’ve come on board here. You’ve really impacted this company in such a large way, Alicia. Truly,” he said the last word carefully as he looked up and gazed at her. She felt his eyes penetrate into her own, and she had to look away due to the intensity and vibration that was growing between them.

She felt torn; there was nothing more than she desired than this man before her: well educated, a go getter, like herself, and devastatingly handsome; a man you could turn to in times of trouble and he would save you, carry you away in his burly arms, and Alicia was a girl who had never been saved before in her life. She felt woozy around him, like she had indulged in one too many glasses of wine. However, she also knew how hard she had worked to get where she was, and she couldn’t let anything jeopardize that. He made her feel safe, something that she hadn’t felt in a long while, if ever and she felt she was safe in sharing her emotions and feelings for him, but was still quite hesitant to do so.

“Sure, that sounds nice.”

“Strictly professional, of course,” he blurted out, a bit too quickly. Ross, too, felt torn in his professional duties and where he knew his heart lay. He had never met a woman quite like Alicia before; a beauty with an attitude and work ethic to match, he was what he and his friends would call a “total 10.”

It was hard for Ross to date and meet women; he felt many of them too simple minded and, many times, distracted by his billions. Yet, in stark contrast, here was a woman who could actually use his money to better her life, and yet not once had she inquired about it as other woman “casually” did around the office.

Instead of asking him questions about his money, she did what she had to do to make her own, and she did it well and modestly. Her hard life had not worn her down, through it all, she still allowed for peace, calamity and trust to be expressed across her face, within her deep brown eyes, like a message waiting to be read.

“Yes, yes of course,” but Alicia knew that the quickness of his answer gave way to the truth in his feelings; that he too felt as she did and she smiled slowly, engaging his eyes once more before deciding that on Friday, they would enjoy cocktails and seafood.

Chapter 6

More Than A Meal

Not only had Alicia never been on a date to such an upscale restaurant (one, in fact, that most needed to make reservations with months in advance, unless, of course, you were Mr. Arthur), but she had never been on a date with such an upscale man. She was worried about what to wear and how to do her hair, how to speak, and what to order. She then quickly reminded herself that what he liked was her, and so she slipped into a fitting black dress, her heels, and applied dark red lip which sat beautifully upon her skin.

He had picked her up in his BMW, Alicia at first embarrassed by where she herself lived, but it didn’t seem to bother Ross at all. He got out and opened the door for her, quickly glancing at the view as she leaned into the car, admiring her long and muscular calves.

When they arrived to dinner, they ordered and within the hour had shared an appetizer, had their meal, dessert and a bottle of wine. Their conversations were flawless and comfortable. They began by discussing the importance of the job, the ups and downs, what Alicia felt best at and what her goals were, but then it quickly turned into a recount of their histories, their lives, even past lovers.

“I’ve had such a lovely time tonight,” Alicia said confidently. Ross looked down at his hands, seemingly nervous, something he never was, and then reached up and took her hand between his. She was startled and jumped a bit, taken aback by this gesture of intimacy. Her reaction made him stumble.

“I’m sorry,” he said quickly, and she grabbed his hands back.

“No. Don’t be.” She saw his eyes grown warm and they kept their hands clasped together.