Chapter 9

Rosalee was sitting next to Ace in first class on their way to New York. She was actually looking forward to going, even if it was with her boss. She turned her head to look at him; his eyes were closed. He looked so peaceful. Usually, he had a scowl on his face. He was different that night they slept together; he smiled and seemed happier. She was curious about this man and wondered what had happened to him to make him so unhappy. Her eyes traveled over his body; she could remember what it felt like to touch him naked. Just thinking of what he did to her that night got her core tingling. She licked her bottom lip, her eyes fixated on his mouth, remembering how he used it between her legs. She laid back in her seat and closed her eyes, reminiscing about that night.

Hearing a small moan, he opened his eyes and looked over at her. Her eyes were closed, and there was a smile on her face. It was the same smile she wore the night they had sex, and knowing it was crazy, he wondered if she was thinking back to that night. His eyes moved down from her face, over her breasts, and down to her legs. The bottom of her dress had ridden up just enough for him to get a look at her legs. He couldn’t help but remember what they felt like when they were wrapped around him, and when his hand moved up and down them, they felt so silky soft. Just thinking about it got his manhood hard, and he grabbed the pillow that was provided and laid it over his lap. Oh yes, bringing her with him might have been a mistake after all.

“Mr. Thatcher, are you asleep?” she asked when she saw that his eyes were closed, but yet the pillow was on his lap.

He opened his eyes. “No, I was just resting my eyes.”

Even though it was only a 3-hour flight, it was uncomfortable for the both of them. Neither one wanted to think or remember that night, but for some reason, it was always on their mind. Neither one spoke during the rest of the flight or on the way to the hotel. Once they were booked in, they went to their separate rooms. She had just finished putting her clothes in the drawers and closet when there was a knock at the door. Since she didn’t know anyone here, she knew it had to be him.

“Rosalee, I need to go over a few things with you before our meeting tomorrow. Do you mind if I come in?”

She stepped aside to let him in. “Can I get you something to drink from the minibar, Ace?” he said as he went and sat down. “Did you go over the numbers as I asked you to?”

“Yes, and everything is as you expected it to be. I went over it several times, and I couldn’t find any mistakes. I’m sure your client will be very pleased with the amount you came up with. You know you could have gotten more for that property.”

“Yeah, I know, but I just want to get rid of it as quick as I can. This way, by dropping the price a little, he will jump at the chance to take it. What are your plans for dinner tonight?”

“I was just going to order some room service,” she replied.

“I wonder if you’d care to join me for dinner down in the dining room. I see no reason why we have to eat alone.”

“If that’s what you want,” she replied quietly. Oh, why did he have to come in here with his jacket off and some of his buttons undone? She asked herself as she looked away from his chest.

“I’ll be back to pick you up around seven,” he said as he got to his feet and handed her some more papers to look over before leaving her room. It didn’t go unnoticed that she was checking out his chest. But he knew it was his own fault for changing his shirt and not doing it all the way up.

Later, he finished getting dressed and walked across the hall to her hotel suite and knocked on the door and waited for her to answer.

“Oh, you’re early,” she said when she opened the door.

“Is everything okay?” he asked her when he noticed she looked a little upset.

“Nothing really, it’s just that the zipper is stuck, and I can’t get it to go up or down.”

“Let me see if I can do something.” He closed the door and turned her around. “I see it’s stuck in the material; I’ll just see if I can get it out.” He had to place his fingers inside, touching her skin as he tried to wiggle the zipper part away from the material of her dress.

She felt a shiver go up her spine when she felt his fingers caressing her back. She held her breath, and it seemed to take forever, and to her, it seemed like his fingers made no attempt to move away from her skin. “This has never happened to me before, and I feel so embarrassed.” Damn her heart was racing like crazy, and she wished that he would hurry up and remove his fingers. She let out the breath that she was holding out when she heard the sound of the zipper being released from the material of her dress as he pulled it up.

“There you go, all fixed,” he said as he did up her dress, letting his fingers linger a little longer than necessary. This was such a big mistake on his part; he couldn’t help becoming aroused, so stepping away, he turned his back to her so that she couldn’t see the bulge inside his pants growing. “Whenever you’re ready, we’ll go down to the dining room.”

“I’ll just be a minute,” she said as she hurried towards the bedroom. As she brushed her hair and looked in the mirror, she could see how flush her face was and prayed to God that he didn’t notice.

When she came out, and they got into the elevator, he stood there with his hands behind his back. “I meant to tell you that you look lovely tonight.” He then turned to look at her. “I hope that you don’t have any trouble getting out of your dress tonight.”

“What?”

“I mean because of the zipper on your dress, I hope it doesn’t get stuck again. If it does, you can always call me, and I’ll come over and help you get out of it.” He mentally slapped himself in the face; he didn’t mean for it to come out the way it sounded.

“That’s okay; I won’t be bothering you. If it happens again, I’ll just have to tear it and throw it away.”

“Now that would be a shame because it’s such a lovely dress.” Once the elevator stopped, he placed his hand on the small of her back and walked with her over to the dining room. After being seated, he ordered a bottle of wine.

During dinner, they managed to make small talk. They talked about business and other meaningless topics. They shared the bottle of wine while they ate their steak, and then afterwards, he walked her up to her room. Taking the key from her hand, he opened the door for her, then handed her back the key.

“Thanks for agreeing to have dinner with me, and I will be back around noon, and we’ll go meet Mr. Maloney. I do hope you brought something conservative to wear around him.”

She gave him a weak smile before answering him sarcastically. “Yes, I’ve borrowed someone’s grandmother’s dress. You know the kind that goes down to your ankles, and the collar goes up your neck.”

He smirked, shaking his head. “Cute, see you tomorrow,” he said and turned to go into his room.

She shut the door after he left, just thinking how shocked he would be if she actually did that, had her smiling. But he should have known that she would not dress sexy around Mr. Maloney after the way he was ogling her last time.

The next day she was ready when he came to pick her up. She was dressed in a skirt, blouse, and a jacket. There was no way that the man would be able to see any part of her chest. But of course, that still didn’t stop him from flirting with her.

“You look lovely, my dear,” he said, placing his hand over hers. “But with a figure like yours, you should wear something that shows it off. So tell me, Miss Keller, do you think I’m making a good deal?”

She slipped her hand out from under his. “Well, it’s not my place to say, but if you really want my opinion, I have to tell you that this is a fantastic deal. I also know that it is worth a lot more than what you are paying for it, and you would be crazy to pass it up.”

After the meal was completed, as well as their business, she excused herself to go to her room, saying she had a headache. The truth was she couldn’t stand the man and didn’t want to be around him any longer than she had to. An hour later, there was a knock at her door, and thinking it was Ace, she opened it without checking and was shocked to find Mr. Maloney standing there. “If you’re looking for Mr. Thatcher, he’s not here.”

Without being invited, he walked in and shut the door behind him. “I know he’s not here, he’s talking to the other client. It’s you I want to see anyways.”

She suddenly felt very nervous. “I think you better leave.”

“And I think you better be nice to me, or I will cancel the deal, and I’m sure your boss will not be very happy with you if I do that. He might even fire you.”

Okay, now she was scared. “I want you to leave now.”

“Oh, I’m not going anywhere, not until I get what I came here for. Now be a good girl and take off your clothes.”

When she went to open the door, he grabbed her and pushed her up against the wall. “Be nice to me, and I’ll make it worth your while. I’m sure that you’re nice to Ace.”

She pushed him off of her, but he grabbed her again. She struggled as she tried to break free. She did manage to scream, but then he put his hand over her mouth and pulled her down to the floor with him. *********

Ace was finally able to get rid of the other client and was on his way to see how Rosalee was feeling when he heard a muffled scream coming from inside her room. He tried the door, but it was locked and called out for her to open it. Not getting an answer and seeing housekeeping walking up the hall with the cart, he yelled at her to use her key to open it.

The tone of his voice must have scared the poor maid because she immediately opened it and stepped away.

When he got inside the room, he saw James Maloney there, and Rosalee was on the floor with tears running down her face. He didn’t have to be told what was happening; he could tell. He raised his fist and punched James in the jaw. “You bastard, I ought to kill you.”

“Ace, this isn’t what it looks like.”

“Like hell, it’s not. Now get out of here before I change my mind and kill you after all. You can forget about our business deal, I wouldn’t sell you that property for all the money in the world.” He opened the door and pushed James out, slamming it behind him. He then turned to her and helped her up. “Are you okay?”

With her hands in his, she nodded her head but couldn’t bring herself to look at him. She felt too ashamed.

“What did he do to you?” When she didn’t answer him, he gripped her chin in the palm of his hand and made her look at him. “I want you to tell me exactly what he did to you.”

“He came up here, and he said I should be nice to him, or he’ll call off the deal, and if he did, you would be really mad at me. When he grabbed me, I pushed him away, but then he pinned me up against the wall and touched my breast. I pushed him away again, and that’s when he grabbed me and dragged me down onto the floor with him. I tried to fight him off, but he was too strong for me. If you hadn’t gotten here when you did, I think he would have raped me.”

When she started crying, he pulled her into his arms and wrapped them around her, stroking her hair. “I’m so sorry he did this to you. I never should have brought you here with me, but I didn’t think he would try something like this. I will make sure he pays for it.”

“This isn’t your fault,” she said, sniffling. It felt so good being in his arms. He made her feel so safe, and just the thoughts of what almost happened made her feel dizzy and sick to her stomach.

When she had settled down, he removed his arms from her and placed the palms of his hands on her cheeks, using his thumbs to wipe away her tears. “No man should ever force himself upon a woman.”

They stared into each other’s eyes, a warm feeling rushing through their veins as their hearts started beating faster. He slowly lowered his head, their faces only an inch apart.

“Ace,” she whispered his name softly, her hands resting on his chest. She could feel his breath fanning her face, then she closed her eyes when his lips came down on hers.