“Yeah, yeah—got all that. You want me to bring it—or do you need a little ‘alone time’ with your diva?”
“Damn it, Tony—I don’t. As a matter of fact, I’m not planning on putting my hands on her again. After she gets done with seeing the doctors, I’m going to tell her the truth, then you and I are going to sit down with Mama G tonight and I’m going to let you explain to her why we got her hopes up.”
“So, you want me to bring the identification now, or what?” Tony said.
“No, bring it to the lobby. We’ll be down in thirty minutes. You can give it to me then.” He hung up and walked back to the room. She was playing the piano, and then she was singing. His heart fluttered at the sound of her voice. He didn’t recognize the song. God, her voice is incredible. Standing inside the hotel he’d turned around with grit and determination, even before he’d come into his unexpected wealth, his business mind kicked in as he listened to her sing. He held his breath on every note—expecting for something normal to occur at any minute, for him to become bored with her skills. But it didn’t happen. Every sound she made, only made him want more. She was mesmerizing, a true phenomenon. He had to keep her around long enough to share her gift with the world. And for his performance center to have her as its debut performer—that would put them both on the map.
Maybe, Tony was right. Not about him being in love—that was silly—but about him being hasty. Maybe he should just let things play out. If he told her the truth this early —before she’d had a chance to bond with him—she might get too upset. She might even leave.
He gulped and opened the door for the steward who was rolling in the breakfast tray.
~~*~~
Bombshell’s cheeks were flushed with happiness. She sat down and started playing. Then stopped as she realized that she couldn’t remember ever playing before. It seemed so strange to know how to do something that seemed so unfamiliar. She stopped playing and got up. And started to pace around the room, feeling uncomfortable, avoiding Merrick’s eyes. Room service arrived with breakfast and she excused herself to wash her hands and touch up her lipstick.
When she returned, Merrick was standing near the table, waiting for her like a gentleman. She noticed for the first time how tall he was. He had to be close to seven feet tall, yet because he was lean, she’d never realized what a giant of a man he was. And then she remembered the feel of his cock inside her. Oh, yeah—that part of him was giant, alright. Moisture pooled inside her, and she had a sudden desire to rip off her clothes and drag him onto the king-size bed and have him for breakfast, but a part of her held back. He’d seemed a bit standoffish, a bit broody, and a bit unhappy with things. It was as if he was angry that there’d been an engagement party at all. Eyeing him surreptitiously while she put her napkin on her lap, she wondered if maybe he’d intended to break things off with her—and he was upset because whoever had planned the surprise party hadn’t gotten the word?
They dug into their food, more out of a desire to not speak than real appetite. As she buttered the flaky croissant with half a ball of butter, she pondered her memory loss. She suddenly remembered laughing just after they’d had sex. Apparently, right after that, she’d had some kind of fit—according to Joann. But she didn’t remember any of her fit, but she remembers giggling. But why? What had been so funny? Suddenly it all came back to her in a flash.
She’d laughed because it seemed so ludicrous that she could forget having had sex wi
th him before. That was it. The idea that a cock that big could be ever be forgotten, only reinforced the severity of her amnesia. And, yet she was remembering some things. The song she’d just played on the piano, for example. It seemed so strange that she couldn’t remember meeting the man she’d obviously fallen so hard for. Maybe, if he could just tell her everything from the first moment they met and fill in the blanks for her, she wouldn’t feel so lost and confused.
“Merrick,” she said, holding the croissant before her open mouth.
“Yes.”
“How did we meet?”
Merrick’s eyebrows went up into his head and he started choking on a piece of melon. He recovered himself, then grabbed for his phone. Bombshell looked at him. She hadn’t heard his phone ring. He pressed a button on his phone and moved towards the door.
“Sorry, honey, business, got to take this.”
~~*~~
Bombshell stared at him as he went out into the hall. A moment later, he poked his head through the door. “Listen, sweetheart, I’ve got to deal with this. Why don’t you rest and I’ll come back for you in thirty minutes—then I’ll take you to the doctor, okay?”
Bombshell didn’t know what to do, other than nod at him. Her stomach ached, and not just from hunger, although she’d barely eaten a bite. He was avoiding her for some reason. Then her mind went back to the note in his pocket. Tina and her twin sister. Was that the business he had to take care of? She wanted to be angry and jealous, but she was too tired, too confused. The pain where she’d hit her head was starting to throb again. She pushed away from the table, got undressed, and climbed into bed in just her panties. She closed her eyes and fell immediately into a deep and dreamless sleep.
~~*~~
Merrick practically ran out of the room. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t anticipated those types of questions. He was a man of planning and detail. He was a designer of buildings and builder of empires, for Christ’s sake. How could he fall down on the job so hard when it came to that girl?
After taking the stairs to the floor below, he made a call for real.
“Tony, do you have the identification yet?” Merrick said to his brother as soon he answered the phone.
“I told you I had it.”
“Well, bring it to the lobby. I need to talk to you.”
When Merrick spotted Tony, he kept his mouth shut and motioned him outside. Walking out of sight of the bell captain and other guests, Merrick led Tony to the front of an idling but empty casino bus.
“Why all the James Bond shit?” Tony said.
“I want to see the paperwork, her ID.”
Tony handed him the envelope. Merrick examined everything without pulling each card out of the envelope. As ordered, he had a driver’s license, a hotel and casino ID, and a health insurance card for one Mona Lisa Van Dyke. Merrick marveled at how authentic the driver’s license looked. Then he noticed the address.