Shady Business by Silver MoonAngel @ AI and ASMR
Carley MoonAngel @ FF.Net
--------------------------------------------------------------------
STANDARD DISCLAIMER APPLIES
--------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: This is the second, EDITED, version of Shady Business. I'm
still going to be writing the first version we all know and love
(well, at least I do) and taking suggestions to revise it and create
this one!
Also, some new elements are going to be introduced, but it will only
prove to enhance it (I hope).
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Five - A Dinner Date
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Darien paced back and forth outside Serena's door. He would
be surprised if she ever decided to speak to him ever again. That
afternoon had changed everything for him. The quiet knowledge had
rested on the edge of his heart for some time now, but he still
didn't want to acknowledge it. Darien quietly cursed himself for
not taking things more slowly.
On the other side of the door, Serena heard Darien pacing and
swearing. This was no longer simply a business deal; it had turned
into something far more than that. She had slept with the man for
goodness' sake! On his study floor--more than once--to make matters
worse.
Darien couldn't take it anymore. Softly knocking, he asked,
"Is it okay for me to come in, Serena?"
Serena sighed. He sounded like a six-year-old who had broken
a toy and was trying to make up for it. He had broken something all
right; he had been an accomplice in her breaking a promise to
herself. "Come in Darien," she murmured softly, hoping he didn't
hear her.
Darien walked into the room, keeping his gaze riveted on
Serena. She was wearing a navy blue Empire-waist dress that fell to
the floor. Her hair was a mass of golden ringlets piled upon her
head. Darien was tempted to pull the hairpins out of her hair and
make sweet love to her right there, but thought better of it. "Are
you ready to go down?"
Serena stood up and tucked her arm into his. "Lead the way."
Serena's insides were in turmoil. They hadn't used any form of
protection this afternoon; with Darien's wicked and just-sated
smile, all her good intentions had melted with the rest of her
insides. Why did she have to forget it? She wouldn't mind having a
baby, just not right now.
Darien felt her tense after they had left the room. Darien
felt tense himself. But his tension was of a different nature. He
felt like he was twenty again, looking at her clad in her blue
bikini through the window. Having her once didn't satiate his
hunger for her, it made him want her more. "Serena?"
Serena looked up at him. Seeing him dressed in a tuxedo
certainly changed her debate in her mind. She nervously licked her
lips and asked, "Yes?"
Darien turned to face her. He leaned down and kissed her
softly on the lips, "Would you stay with me tonight?"
Serena turned her face away from him. Twice in one day when
they forgot protection? As much as she enjoyed it, she didn't want
to take that chance. Softly, she answered, "Not tonight, Darien.
I'm a little sore at the moment."
Darien stopped in his tracks. He hadn't thought... "Serena?
Did I hurt you badly?"
Wildly blushing, Serena fixated her gaze on the floor. She
hadn't thought that he'd berate himself. Sneaking a peak at him
from the corner of her eye, she could see the concern written all
over his face. Raye had said that he used to be warm and tender,
until he let business warp his mind. "No, you were as gentle as you
could be, given the circumstances."
Darien let out a sigh of relief. He never had wanted to hurt
her, even when she had hurt him in the worst way possible.
* * *
Dinner had passed in anything but silence. Darien prodded
Serena to tell him all about the business he had just acquired.
"We're a pretty small company in our area, especially compared
to Zfresh Incorporated," Serena said, "But we have a lot of hard
honest workers."
Waiving a piece of asparagus in the air, Darien said,
"Basically, you were a jack-of-all-trades company. Whatever
technology you could get your hands on, you'd market and mass
produce for the public."
"Essentially, yes. Unlike Zfresh Incorporated, we were
prudent enough not to mass-produce anything too harmful. Just think
what would happen if the technology got in the wrong hands," Serena
said sipping a glass of burgundy. "Then again, I'm just a
figurehead."
Looking at a proof sheet, Darien murmured, "It says that you
inherited it from your father, a Mr. Arden Liam Blade."
Serena snorted, "The only reason I was left the company is
that my older brother Michael decided to move to Hollywood and
become a movie star. Arden felt like he had disgraced the family
and he didn't want his illegitimate children to have it."
"Mike Blade is your brother? How many other brothers and
sisters do you have?" Darien asked incredulously.
"It's amazing that two absolutely different people could come
from the same family tree, isn't it?" Serena dabbed her mouth with
a napkin. "Family secrets have a funny way of coming out of the
closet at weird moments. My half sisters and brother prove it."
Darien raised his glass to her; "I second that notion."
"A nosey reporter found my sisters and brother by following
Michael around, then proceeded to ask my mom what she thought. That
reporter was a damn ditz." Serena took a breath and continued, "She
had to have had some brains though, to be able to track Kathleen all
the way to Michigan."
"That's neither here or there, tell me more about yourself."
Darien said, motioning the staff to leave the room.
"Not before you tell me why you changed your name," Serena
said with a smirk.
Darien nervously ran a hand through his hair. He had thought
she wouldn't have remembered him at all, let alone his name. "I had
a falling out with my father, so I changed it to my mother's maiden
name."
Serena practically spit out her wine. Was this man was
telling her that he changed his name because of his father? "Raye
told me something different when I called her this afternoon."
Darien started tapping his fingers on the polished wood of the
tabletop. His plans had just gone straight to hell. If Raye had
said anything remotely close to his plans, he was going to kill her.
"What did she say?"
Serena looked at him. If she didn't know better, she'd think
he was sweating bullets. "She just said that you changed it so a
girl who had been haunting you wouldn't figure out who you were,"
Serena chuckled, "Imagine this, the great Darien afraid of a woman!"
Turning his thoughts carnal, Darien said, "I'm not afraid of
you. In fact, I say we go to the library." Darien scooted back his
chair and went to help Serena out of hers.
Serena looked at him warily. The last time he had that gleam
in his eyes they had... "No!" She shouted at him, "You stay right
where you are!" She swallowed the lump in her throat as he helped
her out of her chair.
Wiggling his eyebrows at her, Darien asked, "What makes you
think we're going to be doing anything in there but reading books?"
Serena glared at him, "Because I'm starting to think that you
have a naturally dirty mind." Glancing down, she added, "Better
tell your buddy that nothing is going on tonight."
Darien grabbed a hold of her and pinned her to the nearest
wall. He caught her lips as she bucked against his hold, silencing
her protests with a simple, possessive act. "Are you sure you don't
want to?"
Serena, her eyes liquid with desire, just stared at him. She
didn't know how he could have her tied up in knots just by looking
at her. Serena looked up at him and whispered, "Don't stop."
"I don't plan to," he said as he deepened the kiss. He kept
kissing her as he edged her into the nearest room and sprawled her
on a rug. He gave her a repetition of the pleasure she received
that afternoon.
* * *
"Am I hurting you?"
Serena propped herself up on an elbow. They were still
clothed, Serena mused to herself. "No," Serena said as she snuggled
closer to him, "you feel delicious." She leaned up and kissed him,
coaxing him in how much she enjoyed this.
Darien sighed as she kissed him. The fact that she gave
herself to him so willingly was humbling and gave him a sense of
balance in the world, as if this was how it was supposed to be. He
rolled off her and held her close to his chest for a moment. This
month was going to go by far to quickly.
Serena pulled out of his arms and stood up. She needed to
tell him how this was not going to work out anytime soon. "Darien,
we can't do this anymore."
He looked up at her from his position on the floor. Something
must really be troubling her if she would say something like that.
"Why not? I thought you enjoyed it."
That was the problem, she enjoyed it too much. "Nothing
against you, Darien, it's just I want a little time to myself."
Enough time to make sure that she wasn't pregnant.
Darien stood and clasped her hand in his. Come hell or high
water, she was going to be his, she just didn't know it yet. "Fine,
the moment you're ready again, you're going to move into my room
with me."
Serena pulled away from him. He was going too fast too soon.
"I'll see how I feel." She dashed up the stairs and into her set of
rooms, locking the door behind her, more afraid of herself than him.
Carley MoonAngel @ FF.Net
--------------------------------------------------------------------
STANDARD DISCLAIMER APPLIES
--------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: This is the second, EDITED, version of Shady Business. I'm
still going to be writing the first version we all know and love
(well, at least I do) and taking suggestions to revise it and create
this one!
Also, some new elements are going to be introduced, but it will only
prove to enhance it (I hope).
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Five - A Dinner Date
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Darien paced back and forth outside Serena's door. He would
be surprised if she ever decided to speak to him ever again. That
afternoon had changed everything for him. The quiet knowledge had
rested on the edge of his heart for some time now, but he still
didn't want to acknowledge it. Darien quietly cursed himself for
not taking things more slowly.
On the other side of the door, Serena heard Darien pacing and
swearing. This was no longer simply a business deal; it had turned
into something far more than that. She had slept with the man for
goodness' sake! On his study floor--more than once--to make matters
worse.
Darien couldn't take it anymore. Softly knocking, he asked,
"Is it okay for me to come in, Serena?"
Serena sighed. He sounded like a six-year-old who had broken
a toy and was trying to make up for it. He had broken something all
right; he had been an accomplice in her breaking a promise to
herself. "Come in Darien," she murmured softly, hoping he didn't
hear her.
Darien walked into the room, keeping his gaze riveted on
Serena. She was wearing a navy blue Empire-waist dress that fell to
the floor. Her hair was a mass of golden ringlets piled upon her
head. Darien was tempted to pull the hairpins out of her hair and
make sweet love to her right there, but thought better of it. "Are
you ready to go down?"
Serena stood up and tucked her arm into his. "Lead the way."
Serena's insides were in turmoil. They hadn't used any form of
protection this afternoon; with Darien's wicked and just-sated
smile, all her good intentions had melted with the rest of her
insides. Why did she have to forget it? She wouldn't mind having a
baby, just not right now.
Darien felt her tense after they had left the room. Darien
felt tense himself. But his tension was of a different nature. He
felt like he was twenty again, looking at her clad in her blue
bikini through the window. Having her once didn't satiate his
hunger for her, it made him want her more. "Serena?"
Serena looked up at him. Seeing him dressed in a tuxedo
certainly changed her debate in her mind. She nervously licked her
lips and asked, "Yes?"
Darien turned to face her. He leaned down and kissed her
softly on the lips, "Would you stay with me tonight?"
Serena turned her face away from him. Twice in one day when
they forgot protection? As much as she enjoyed it, she didn't want
to take that chance. Softly, she answered, "Not tonight, Darien.
I'm a little sore at the moment."
Darien stopped in his tracks. He hadn't thought... "Serena?
Did I hurt you badly?"
Wildly blushing, Serena fixated her gaze on the floor. She
hadn't thought that he'd berate himself. Sneaking a peak at him
from the corner of her eye, she could see the concern written all
over his face. Raye had said that he used to be warm and tender,
until he let business warp his mind. "No, you were as gentle as you
could be, given the circumstances."
Darien let out a sigh of relief. He never had wanted to hurt
her, even when she had hurt him in the worst way possible.
* * *
Dinner had passed in anything but silence. Darien prodded
Serena to tell him all about the business he had just acquired.
"We're a pretty small company in our area, especially compared
to Zfresh Incorporated," Serena said, "But we have a lot of hard
honest workers."
Waiving a piece of asparagus in the air, Darien said,
"Basically, you were a jack-of-all-trades company. Whatever
technology you could get your hands on, you'd market and mass
produce for the public."
"Essentially, yes. Unlike Zfresh Incorporated, we were
prudent enough not to mass-produce anything too harmful. Just think
what would happen if the technology got in the wrong hands," Serena
said sipping a glass of burgundy. "Then again, I'm just a
figurehead."
Looking at a proof sheet, Darien murmured, "It says that you
inherited it from your father, a Mr. Arden Liam Blade."
Serena snorted, "The only reason I was left the company is
that my older brother Michael decided to move to Hollywood and
become a movie star. Arden felt like he had disgraced the family
and he didn't want his illegitimate children to have it."
"Mike Blade is your brother? How many other brothers and
sisters do you have?" Darien asked incredulously.
"It's amazing that two absolutely different people could come
from the same family tree, isn't it?" Serena dabbed her mouth with
a napkin. "Family secrets have a funny way of coming out of the
closet at weird moments. My half sisters and brother prove it."
Darien raised his glass to her; "I second that notion."
"A nosey reporter found my sisters and brother by following
Michael around, then proceeded to ask my mom what she thought. That
reporter was a damn ditz." Serena took a breath and continued, "She
had to have had some brains though, to be able to track Kathleen all
the way to Michigan."
"That's neither here or there, tell me more about yourself."
Darien said, motioning the staff to leave the room.
"Not before you tell me why you changed your name," Serena
said with a smirk.
Darien nervously ran a hand through his hair. He had thought
she wouldn't have remembered him at all, let alone his name. "I had
a falling out with my father, so I changed it to my mother's maiden
name."
Serena practically spit out her wine. Was this man was
telling her that he changed his name because of his father? "Raye
told me something different when I called her this afternoon."
Darien started tapping his fingers on the polished wood of the
tabletop. His plans had just gone straight to hell. If Raye had
said anything remotely close to his plans, he was going to kill her.
"What did she say?"
Serena looked at him. If she didn't know better, she'd think
he was sweating bullets. "She just said that you changed it so a
girl who had been haunting you wouldn't figure out who you were,"
Serena chuckled, "Imagine this, the great Darien afraid of a woman!"
Turning his thoughts carnal, Darien said, "I'm not afraid of
you. In fact, I say we go to the library." Darien scooted back his
chair and went to help Serena out of hers.
Serena looked at him warily. The last time he had that gleam
in his eyes they had... "No!" She shouted at him, "You stay right
where you are!" She swallowed the lump in her throat as he helped
her out of her chair.
Wiggling his eyebrows at her, Darien asked, "What makes you
think we're going to be doing anything in there but reading books?"
Serena glared at him, "Because I'm starting to think that you
have a naturally dirty mind." Glancing down, she added, "Better
tell your buddy that nothing is going on tonight."
Darien grabbed a hold of her and pinned her to the nearest
wall. He caught her lips as she bucked against his hold, silencing
her protests with a simple, possessive act. "Are you sure you don't
want to?"
Serena, her eyes liquid with desire, just stared at him. She
didn't know how he could have her tied up in knots just by looking
at her. Serena looked up at him and whispered, "Don't stop."
"I don't plan to," he said as he deepened the kiss. He kept
kissing her as he edged her into the nearest room and sprawled her
on a rug. He gave her a repetition of the pleasure she received
that afternoon.
* * *
"Am I hurting you?"
Serena propped herself up on an elbow. They were still
clothed, Serena mused to herself. "No," Serena said as she snuggled
closer to him, "you feel delicious." She leaned up and kissed him,
coaxing him in how much she enjoyed this.
Darien sighed as she kissed him. The fact that she gave
herself to him so willingly was humbling and gave him a sense of
balance in the world, as if this was how it was supposed to be. He
rolled off her and held her close to his chest for a moment. This
month was going to go by far to quickly.
Serena pulled out of his arms and stood up. She needed to
tell him how this was not going to work out anytime soon. "Darien,
we can't do this anymore."
He looked up at her from his position on the floor. Something
must really be troubling her if she would say something like that.
"Why not? I thought you enjoyed it."
That was the problem, she enjoyed it too much. "Nothing
against you, Darien, it's just I want a little time to myself."
Enough time to make sure that she wasn't pregnant.
Darien stood and clasped her hand in his. Come hell or high
water, she was going to be his, she just didn't know it yet. "Fine,
the moment you're ready again, you're going to move into my room
with me."
Serena pulled away from him. He was going too fast too soon.
"I'll see how I feel." She dashed up the stairs and into her set of
rooms, locking the door behind her, more afraid of herself than him.