Page 26 of Quarantined with the Billionaire

Chapter Eight

Slicing my fork through the layers of the decadent tiramisu in front of me, I tried to keep my mouth from watering. “How do you manage to maintain your weight, Maddox?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean if you eat like this every day—chicken parmigiana, tiramisu, buttery garlic bread—how do you manage to stay fit and trim?”

I wanted to ask how he stayed so firm and hard and cut. Ah, but I hadn’t seen him without his clothes. It was a guess. An educated one, though. His musculature was hard to pretend not to notice.

He laughed, making the corners of his eyes crinkle. “I don’t eat like this every day. Every once in a while if I’m home, Simon makes something special for me.”

“Yeah, but this is like five meals in one.” All the delicious fat and sugar and calories…

The way he cocked his eyebrow made my stomach clench. “You have to make sure to work out harder. It keeps you in shape.”

Swallowing, I averted my eyes back to the tiramisu on my fork, bringing it to my mouth. The flavors of coffee and cocoa exploded as I moved the dessert around between my teeth. “Mmm.”

“The best, yes? Simon is one of the most talented cooks I’ve ever met.”

“You’re too kind, sir,” Simon said, approaching the table with a carafe and two mugs. “Would you like some coffee?”

Maddox gave one small nod of his head, and I decided that sounded good. “Yes, please.”

Soon, we were alone again and Maddox took a sip of his coffee. “I get the feeling you deny yourself a lot of desserts.”

Oh, God. Had I been an animal, shoving the tiramisu in my mouth like a starving lion? I glanced at the plate to assure myself that I’d been taking my time, ladylike and slow. “I do.”

“Nothing wrong with that. But you have to allow yourself little pleasures from time to time.”

My spine stiffened…because it felt like he was talking about something else entirely. Setting my fork down as if to make a point, I forced myself to look in his eyes. “I do.”

“Hmm.” Maddox set his coffee mug down before reaching over with his fork, spearing another bite of the dessert on my plate. Only he didn’t bring it to his mouth as I expected. Instead, he brought it to mine. “Yet here it is and you’re only allowing yourself a couple of small bites. If you decide you’re going to eat dessert, you shouldn’t deny yourself. Enjoy the pleasure fully.” I opened my mouth, picturing the fork as his cock instead, taking his words as I was beginning to suspect he intended. As he pulled the utensil out of my closed lips, he added, “And don’t feel guilty about it afterward. So long as it’s not an addiction, there’s nothing wrong with rewarding yourself on occasion.”

I pulled a long, slow breath through my nose, trying to keep myself calm and steady. After I swallowed the piece he’d placed in my mouth, I looked at the small white plate in front of him. “You talk a good game, Maddox, but you’ve hardly touched yours.”

He gave a small laugh then, breaking the spell. “And that’s why I’m the boss. Do as I say, not as I do.” Still grinning, he scooped up a bite of his own, closing his lips around the fork.

As we ate in silence for a while, I began to wonder if I was making more out of that exchange than I should have. Maybe it had all been completely innocent. Fun. A little flirty, perhaps, but nothing that had any real meaning.

And his next words cemented that thought.

“Bailey, now that the governor has put out a stay-at-home order, I’m concerned about where it’s going to go.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve been vital to my work here.”

I pushed my fork through another slice of the decadent dessert. “Yes, but don’t you expect your old admin to be back soon?”

“I’m sure you know I can’t talk about what’s going on with her—but, suffice it to say, I don’t expect her back for another few weeks.” Picking up his coffee cup, he waited to speak until my eyes met his again. “Which brings me to you. I have work to get done here, Bailey, virus or no virus. And, even though I’m not meeting with clients for dinner or other events, I’m as busy as ever. I can’t do it by myself.” I nodded, waiting for him to say more. “This stay-at-home order…right now, it’s not bad. Simon can still shop for me—and I can continue driving you home. But I’ve been keeping an eye on what’s going on elsewhere. People leaving their homes getting accosted, shot, even arrested.”

My eyes felt like saucers. “What?”

“I don’t expect that here in the U.S. But I could see authorities clamping down more if the virus keeps spreading like it has been…making us all go into quarantine. So this is what I propose. You pack your bags, whatever you think you’ll need for a week or two, and you stay here.”

Part of me liked this idea—but another part of me was freaking out. “Weekends, too?”

“Just until this pandemic blows over. I have a second master suite upstairs. You’d have your own room and bathroom. I’ll get whatever else you need for the duration, but I don’t want to lose the progress we’ve made.”

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