Page 16 of Dr. Billionaire
You already want babies with him?
She didn’t… she didn’t think. But just as with the money the other night, the experience felt somewhat cheapened, like Mark knew this was obviously a temporary arrangement, so he had to be extra careful not to knock her up.
He helped her to stand and led her by the hand into a bathroom on the first floor, where there was a giant walk-in shower. Reaching in to turn on the water, he opened the cupboards of the vanity and took out two white, fluffy towels, placing them on the counter before taking her hand again and leading her to stand under the water with him.
For a moment they just stood there, Jenna feeling sore just about everywhere and Mark looking at her with a sort of curious smile on his face.
“Are you okay?” he finally asked.
“Yeah, I’m good,” she answered, reaching for a bottle of body wash she saw on the shelf.
Shewasokay, technically.
That had been a phenomenal fucking, she really couldn’t have asked for anything better. But her mind was wandering to other things. Like the fact that she really needed to find a job.
If she had her own job and some financial security then maybe she wouldn’t feel so hopelessly dependent on the gloriousspecimen of a man taking a shower with her. That was how she needed to take back control. The last thing she wanted was to become one of those girls who was desperate to keep her man. That was a dangerous, unattractive place to be.
It was settled, she decided as she washed her body with a loofah. When she got back home she would start her job hunt in earnest, and she’d take another shitty one if she had to. She’d survived many shitty jobs in the past.
Having decided that, she felt instantly better and was able to finish cleaning herself as Mark did the same beside her. Turning off the shower, he stepped out and handed her one of the towels.
“Would you like to spend the night, Jenna?” he asked casually as he dried off, then wrapped the towel around his waist.
Huh, really? He’d already gotten laid, and he still wanted her to stay over?
Jenna finished drying off slowly, wrapping the towel around her wet hair as she pretended to take time to think this proposal over.
Cuddling up next to Mark in bed sounded so nice.
“That would be great,” she responded before she could second-guess herself.
CHAPTER 7
Morning light filtered through the sheer curtains, casting a warm glow over the room. Jenna stirred, consciousness creeping in as she became aware of the gentle rise and fall of Mark’s chest beside her. His presence was a comforting weight, an anchor in the sea of her tumultuous thoughts.
She rolled onto her side to face him, studying the lines of his face. It felt natural, waking up here with him.
But as the minutes ticked by and Mark’s steady breathing filled the silence, Jenna’s mind couldn’t help but stray from the warmth of his sheets to the cold reality waiting outside these walls. The thought of her employment—or lack thereof—loomed like a dark cloud on her horizon.
There was no getting around it. She needed a job.
Yes, she’d signed up for a sugar daddy website. But that wasn’t supposed to be acareer. She’d never expected it to lead to anything other than a rent payment or two. She didn’t want to be a kept woman.
But whatdidshe want to be? If she found another job in the service industry that had decent tips, she could probably afford a couple of college classes each semester. She’d never been a fan of school, though. She’d gotten decent grades in high school, but she’d hated sitting in class.
Her dad had always wanted her to be a lawyer, and her mom would have been happy with anything she did as long as she was pursuing a passion.
She closed her eyes again, and visions of her parents’ marriage popped into her mind. Her mother, always gracious yet tethered to her father’s side, had never known financial freedom. Their eventual separation had been messy, and she’d seen a side of her parents that had left her feeling pretty jaded about life and love in general. The aftermath had been Jenna’s inheritance: a fear of dependency and a vow to never follow that same path.
Jenna brushed a strand of brown hair from Mark’s forehead, allowing herself a moment longer before facing the day ahead. She knew what she wanted: to be with him yet not at the expense of losing herself. She just wasn’t entirely sure how to make that happen.
Her mind drifted back to the last time she had seen her parents, over a year ago now, right before they had told her they were separating. It was at their small, rundown house in the suburbs—the one Jenna had grown up in. She remembered the creaky floorboards, the faded floral wallpaper, the musty smell that permeated the rooms.
The visit had started pleasantly enough. Her mother had cooked Jenna’s favorite childhood meal, tuna mac and cheese. Over dinner, they caught up on life. Jenna told them about dropping out of college, much to their chagrin.
“We just want you to have a good career and be financially stable,” her father lectured. “You’re too smart not to get your degree.”
Jenna had bristled at that, not wanting to get into another debate over her life choices. Then the conversation had moved on to lighter topics, and Jenna temporarily forgot the lingering tension.
