Hollie is looking down at the water and the boats lazily passing by. “I would have killed to have grown up somewhere like this,” she says with a smile. It hurts to think she had to struggle growing up.
No child, especially not someone as sweet as Hollie, should have to endure the childhood she did. Even after my parents died and I was shipped off to Uncle Gilbert for a few years, I may not have had much love, but I was always safe and taken care of.
Settling my large hand over her much smaller one, I ask, “What was your childhood like?”
She’s quiet, lost in thought. I hope I haven’t brought up anything too painful, but I need to know this about her. I need to know everything so I can take care of her from now on.
Who would have thought? Archer Clarke, caregiver. This girl brings weird shit out of me.
“It was nothing like this, I can tell you that. I won’t bore you with the details.”
“You’re not boring me, Hollie. I asked because I want to know. I want to know everything about you. That includes your childhood.” Her cheeks heat with embarrassment. I am pretty sure this isn’t something that she shares with many people. That makes any tidbit she’ll give me that much more special.
She squirms a bit in her chair, uncomfortable, but continues forward. “It was just my mom and me for a long time. I never even met my father until I was older. Even then, we’ve only had a few conversations. I honestly don’t want to have anything to do with him. We’ve lived in Milford basically my entire life and my mom never got over getting left by a rich man when she was certain that he was her meal ticket and instead she was saddled with a baby. She was always kind of bitter after that and turned to drinking. When my half-sister, Paige, came along, things only got worse. She didn’t even know who Paige’s father was. She started spending less and less time at home and more time with her loser boyfriends. One of them got her hooked on heroin and that was that. I basically had to hold together our family. I worked whatever jobs I could to get money and take care of my sister.
“Paige is a junior in high school, so she’s still there with my mom. I felt horrible leaving because I know they need me, but there were no opportunities there. No college and certainly no jobs that would pay me enough to send money back to them.”
I’m a little stunned at what she’s revealed. I already knew she didn’t have the best childhood, but this is much worse than I thought. “What about your sister? Should she be there with your mom if she’s always high and has sketchy guys coming over?”
Hollie lets out a deep sigh as if this very thing has been on her mind for a long, long time. Knowing her, it has.
“As soon as Mr. Moreno let us move into his property without paying rent, I tried to get Paige to come live with me. But she was a sophomore in high school and didn’t want to leave her friends. Plus, I know she would feel guilty about leaving our mother even if she would never say that to me. I bring it up to her every once in a while, but it’s a no go.”
Dante Moreno has been footing the bill for her rent? I’ll have to find some way to thank him for taking care of my girl. Normally, I would be a jealous motherfucker at the thought of another man laying eyes on Hollie, let alone taking care of her in any way. However, since it’s before I knew she existed and she needed someone watching out for her, I’ll let it go. That, plus the fact that I know he’s been hung up on some woman for years, lets me not dwell on it.
“Hollie, I could help by sending—”
“Oh, no you don’t,” she interrupts, putting her hand up to stop me from continuing. “You gave me a job. You’ve done quite enough. The money you pay me helps immensely. I would never be able to give them the money I’ve been able to send if it weren’t for you. That’s all the help I need.” I see tears gather in the corner of her eyes as she continues, “I could actually send enough money to my little sister last week so that she could buy a dress and shoes for her school dance. She’s going to Homecoming because of you. Thank you.”
A tear slips from her eye and runs down her cheek. I reach across the table and capture it with my thumb. Before I can stop myself, I grasp her wrist, tugging her over to me and settling her in my lap.
“No Hollie, that’s all you. You take care of your mom and sister. I didn’t do anything except hire an amazing assistant. It’s your heart that’s pure and takes care of everyone you know.”
The first order of business tomorrow is getting my angel a raise. It’s not like she doesn’t deserve it. She’s hands down the best assistant I’ve ever had. Plus, she obviously needs the money to take care of her family. She won’t let me do anything to help directly, but she can’t stop me from doing this. I’m not even going to tell her. It will be a nice surprise on her next paycheck.
Her warm body leans into me easily, molding up against my solid chest. She nuzzles my neck, shooting bolts of lightning through my body. I duck down to capture her lips with my own. She opens for me immediately, letting me explore her mouth. The kiss is softer than our previous ones, almost as if it’s full of emotions neither of us wants to say out loud yet. At least I hope she has emotions for me. Her plump ass is rubbing against my lengthening cock and I’m ready for dinner to be over. Now.
I put my hands under her ass and stand, scooping her up with me. Her legs immediately wrap around my waist and she lets out a little gasp of surprise.
“Where are we going?”
“Dessert.”
I push inside the French doors, not caring that I’ve left the remnants of our dinner out on the patio, and make my way swiftly up the stairs to my bedroom, my mouth never leaving hers. I don’t bother turning on the lights. There’s enough of the moon shining in my windows to highlight the bed, almost as if there’s a spotlight on it. Good, I don’t want to miss a moment of this.
Hollie releases her legs from their hold around my waist, and I let her slide down my body. She doesn’t stop once her feet hit the floor, but continues on until she’s kneeling before me, her face mere inches from the large bulge in my pants.
“What are you doing?” I ask, desire making my voice thick.
Loosening my belt, she looks up at me through her eyelashes, lips red and swollen from our earlier kisses. “I want my dessert.”
A growl escapes from my mouth and I reach down to help her, impatient to have that perfect pout of hers wrapped around my cock. Once I’ve kicked off my pants and boxers, her hands wrap around my shaft firmly. My head falls back from the pleasure radiating from my cock through the rest of my body. I don’t know how I’m going to get inside her without coming when I can barely remain standing with just her hand on me.
She leans forward, her tongue licking around the tip of my cock, collecting the drop of pre-cum that’s escaped the slit. She swallows it down and brings her eyes back up to mine. Her entire body is flushed and there is a look of pure lust on her face.
“Dress,” I bark out at her. She raises her hands in the air and I reach down, pulling it over her head and toss it into the corner of the room. She’s kneeling before me in only her knee-high boots and a black lace bra and panty set. I almost come all over myself right then, instead I finish unbuttoning my shirt and slip it off my shoulders. I can see Hollie eyeing my chest appreciatively before lowering her mouth back to my cock once again. This time she takes the head in her mouth and gives it a gentle sucking. I groan and attempt to still my hips from thrusting into her. I want to let her take her time exploring me. For now.
Instead, I tangle my fingers in her hair, murmuring words of encouragement. She moves her mouth slowly down my shaft, pulling back after a moment, then taking more of me into her throat. Her tongue runs along the underside of my cock, sending me into a frenzy every time it hits that sensitive spot under my head. Her mouth and hand continue to run along my turgid shaft until I’m about to explode. I use my hand still buried in her hair and pull her off me, her mouth making a popping sound that releases a groan from deep within my chest.