Lost in the moment and the titillating pleasure of an orgasm, Mandi realized that Sergio had crawled on top of her and was thrusting into her intensely, pounding in and out like he was playing her like a drum. It was so incredible and Mandi wanted him to play her more…keep her exploding and the passion growing.
And it did.
Sergio was driven and he kept going harder and harder, staring at Mandi closely as she showed that she could not stop the pleasure she was receiving from releasing from deep within her.
“It’s coming,” Sergio announced as he shot into Mandi, releasing the tension that had been building up in him. “Mandi, you’re incredible,” he panted.
“I love you, Sergio,” Mandi said softly.
In a single instant the intense movements that had been preceding came to an abrupt halt and the air was quiet, except for the heavy breathing. Mandi saw Sergio staring at her, trying to determine if he’d heard her words correctly.
It was only a few seconds in real time, but it seemed like an eternity to Mandi. She was aware that she was staring at Sergio’s lips and not into his eyes; just waiting for them to move and mouth back the words she so desperately wanted to hear. Sadly, no I love you came out. Instead he rolled off her and was lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling.
Mandi was devastated and in that instant she knew that she’d crossed the line. Sergio was only interested in an arrangement and she’d been so damn foolish to think it could be more. Aside from intense embarrassment, Mandi also forced herself to admit one other thing. Sergio must still really have strong feelings for Olivia.
The rest of the night was silent. Mandi didn’t know what to say and didn’t want to talk. It ended up with Sergio giving her a kiss on the cheek like you’d give a grandma, and saying goodnight in a dull and distant voice. If Mandi would have had any place to go she would have snuck out. She didn’t sleep well that night, if at all, and had a feeling that Sergio was awake too. Yet, instead of talking about what happened they remained silent, no communication existing between the two of them but a vortex of thoughts swirling in their minds.
Chapter 17
Morning came and Mandi was exhausted and tired. Sergio was definitely acting differently and she couldn’t stand it. It irritated her. If he didn’t love her—fine, but he didn’t have to act like an aloof ass about it.
Mandi knew that she had started this and she wanted to end it. She didn’t want Sergio to pull away from her because of what she said. It was time to do some damage control so their relationship, however you would define it, wouldn’t just fall apart. The three words, I love you, were apparently powerful enough that they could destroy relationships and make confident men cower in fear.
Mandi walked up to Sergio. He was finishing getting dressed for the day. “Hey, is everything alright?”
Sergio looked at her and you could see the hesitation in his eyes, trying to assess what she may be getting at. “I’m fine, Mandi. Just tired and preoccupied with some things.”
Mandi had an idea that she knew what things Sergio was occupied with and knew that it was her fault. She’d told him she loved him too quickly, startling him from what he believed their arrangement was. Suddenly the day of building up confidence to say those words yesterday seemed like one of the most foolish things she’d ever done.
“Sergio…about last night. I’m really sorry. I just blurted it out in a moment of passion. God knows that I’m not ready for something serious and I know we haven’t known each other long in a more intimate way for me to really be in love with you. I’m hoping you can just forget about it.”
Sergio looked at Mandi and she could see his clenched jaw. He breathed in deeply and put his hands behind his neck. “That’s probably for the best. Well, I’ve got to get going.”
“Okay then. Have a great day,” Mandi said. She didn’t even know what Sergio was doing that day, but it was clear that it involved getting as far away from her as possible. She didn’t think she could have felt any worse than she did at that given moment.
Mandi did follow Sergio downstairs because she was ready to eat breakfast. Sergio sat down too and the mood was dull to say the least. The conversation was so dull and mundane that it seemed like they didn’t even like each other. Sergio’s cousins, Frederic and Angelica, were their saving grace. They were talking about some project they had going on and chattering away animatedly, not aware of the tension between two adults—one hurt and one on the run.
“Well, time for me to go,” Sergio said.
“Have a great day. I’ll see you later,” Mandi replied.
Sergio nodded and headed toward the door, grabbing his keys in the small stand that was in the front entrance foyer. After the front door shut Mandi casually strolled over and peeked out the sidelights of the grand front entrance. There was a group of guys out there and Sergio was laughing and giving enthusiastic handshakes. Mandi peered closer and recognized those guys. They were from the BBBBC. What were they doing here? Probably making sure that Sergio stayed the bachelor. They could thank Mandi for making sure that happened.
Mandi walked out to say hi to everyone, not that she knew them very well, but she just had to do something. She recognized two of them. One was Marshall Kent and the other was Leroy Marston, the one who’d been calling for Mandi at the gallery. She wasn’t sure who the third guy was, but immediately realized that Sergio was not all that warm and friendly toward him.
Confidence was one of the big issues with the BBBBC, but Sergio had still managed to tell Mandi a little bit about some of the members. She recalled that Marshall Kent was an actor and had just opened up an indie film company. He was one of those men that was so handsome that they almost seemed plastic. He’d really had quite the interesting life, being raised in foster care and eventually finding out that his father was some eccentric billionaire when he was in his early twenties. He’d inherited a fortune and was the male version of an Annie story in many ways.
Then there was Leroy Marsten. Mandi had thought he was a very good looking guy when she’d met him at the auction, but was so distracted with everything that she hadn’t thought much more about it. His sandy blonde hair and blue eyes were so appealing, making him look very playful. He was also very flirty and confident in his ability to claim a woman’s heart, Mandi suspected. Why wouldn’t he be? He was a self made billionaire after all, pioneering the internet security market at a very young age.