Page 107 of The Art of Taking Second Chances

So, eighty-five plus seventeen is one hundred and two. It was working again. I wasn’t drawn to all the wonderful things happening to my body. I tightened my pelvic muscles again, seventeen sevens—

“Tara,” he rumbled in a deep voice. He leaned into me, kissed my shoulder, and dragged his fingers down my back. My head rose in response, and my mind drifted to him for a brief, weak moment. “Do it again, baby, squeeze me. Do you know how good you feel? How tight and perfect?”

“Shut up, Sameer. I know what you’re doing,” I said, and reverted to the numbers dancing in my head. But he kissed my back, and they vanished again.

“Oh, Tara…I want you just like this…everyday…for the rest of my life.” He enunciated the words into my ear, and the volcano erupted. My treacherous body responded violently to his words and spasmed, clenching him tight, my orgasm coursing through my body. My head dipped forward and my knees buckled as I felt him pulsate vigorously. With a silent grunt, he emptied himself and collapsed on my back. He beat me by two seconds.

When we descended that high, he removed the condom and trashed it in the bin. “There you go, Tara Kadam, you lose again.” With a handful of tissues plucked from the box on his desk, he wiped himself clean.

“You cheated,” I said, adjusting the useless bra that covered nothing.

“Says the person using math to delay her orgasm.” He grinned and bent to suck my nipple peeking through the ring.

I pushed him away with a grunt. “Well, congratulations, big winner.”

“That’s not in the spirit of the game now, is it, loser?” He pulled me closer and cupped my butt. “Do you want to remove the rings? Do they hurt? I have lotion in my drawer if you want.”

I smiled. “I’m okay. They aren’t too tight.”

“That was the best surprise anyone’s ever given me, babe. You get something special for this tonight, your birthday gift.”

“I don’t care much for worldly possessions,” I said with a dramatic flair. “But I won’t say no to having you.” I grinned, and he laughed.

“I’m sorry I can’t take the day off. With this unexpected trip to India, there’s much I need to do.”

“That’s alright.” I flirted. “I can’t wait for this evening.”

“Me neither. Now let me find someone to give you a ride back. I’ll come and get you after work.”

“What? No way! This will be my walk of shame, if there ever was one. Everyone on this floor knows what we did in this office. Probably heard us too. I’ll avoid all eye contact and slip out as discreetly as possible.”

“Hey, you got to own it with pride. Plus, no one is going to make eye contact with you, sweetheart. You were in the boss’s office,” he said with a wink.

“And when has that ever worked out well for anyone?”

“True, but you’re the only one who’s been in here with me, so that kind of makes you special, doesn’t it?”

“Speaking of…”

He sighed. “I haven’t yet.”

“You still don’t have your ring on.”

He looked at his hand. “I didn’t notice. That’s telling.”

I caught a hint of anxiety on his face as he tucked his shirt into the trousers.

“Don’t worry,” I said, placing a hand on his chest. I straightened his tie and put his hair back in place. “It won’t be as bad as you imagine.” He nodded.

Despite my repeated protests, he drove me back. As I got out of his car below my apartment, he said, “Hey, save this set. I see us using it many times over.”

Chapter 32

Sameer

Iremained distracted through my last meeting. Honestly, I was distracted since I dropped Tara off, but I couldn’t cancel or reschedule my conferences. With another impending visit to India, I had to make every minute count. I still had to figure out how to break up with Aarti without hurting her. And I wondered what Tara would think of me when she learned about how I treated Sangita and Riya. Would she hate me? Or leave me for good?

Shoving the negative thoughts back to some dark corner of my mind, I called the caterers to confirm the time of delivery. Instead of taking Tara to a busy restaurant, I had placed an order for a four-course meal and a specialty cake that morning. She deserved to be treated like a queen, my queen. I wanted to shower her with the love and attention she deserved. Something I should’ve done years ago. She was Tara, a star, my star.

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