Time for Change (9 page)

“I have to move in here?”

“Yes, you’ll quit your job.”

She nodded.

“And then we’re going to see where this leads.” For him it was going to
lead down the aisle with a ring on her finger.
 

“Okay, I can handle that.”

“Good,” he said, sinking his fingers into her hair. “Now I’m going to
make love to you for the rest of the night.”

Chapter Seven

Rachel stared down at Chris’s sleeping form. She’d wiggled her way out
from underneath him, taken a shower, and changed into a pair of spare clothes
he kept in her room. Over the years she’d collected quite a few clothes in his
apartment. Tucking some of her brown hair behind her ear, she walked out of the
bedroom. Last night had been pretty surreal to her.

Yes, she’d been in love with him for a long time. Was it the kind of
love a man and woman should have for each other? She’d never been in love with
a man before and had nothing to compare it to.

Leaving the room, she grabbed a scarf, some gloves, and a hat along with
her coat and made her way out of his apartment. She passed a couple kissing,
and she smiled at them, not recognizing either person. In the elevator, she
folded her arms, trying to figure everything out in her mind.

Chris was a dominant man without the whole BDSM stuff. She knew about it
because of the hype surrounding that kind of literature at the moment. Her
curiosity had gotten the better of her once before, and she’d bought plenty of
fiction books about it. Chris was not into spanking or domination like that. He
was simply the guy in their relationship.

Relationship?
She couldn’t help but chuckle to herself about that. Wow, her life had
taken a huge turn.

She’d slept with Chris, and now they were considering being in a
relationship together. No, not considering, they
were
in a relationship together.

Rachel jumped as the elevator pinged startling her.

Taking a deep breath she left the elevator, nodded at the security guard
and ran out into the cold. She’d never been much of a runner, but she needed to
get as far away from Chris as she could. He didn’t help her to think. All he
did was confuse her, and then he’d order her, which only turned her on.

What kind of woman was she to be turned on and to feel safe when her man
was ordering her around? Well, ordering was the wrong word. She entered the
first coffee shop and ordered a strong black coffee to go.

Back to walking, she knew where she was going without even thinking. Her
sister always knew the answers to her problems. It was probably silly of her to
think of Claire right now, but she was the only person Rachel trusted. Maybe
talking to her in some way would help with her indecision.

I’m losing my
mind.

Sipping at her coffee, she circled the cemetery gate. Several people
were walking around the small graveyard. She didn’t wander around. Instead, she
went straight toward her sister.

Staring down at the stone marking Claire’s resting place, Rachel felt
tears fill her eyes and fall down. Whenever she let her guard down she recalled
everything she’d lost in the world. Her parents, her sister, her niece, all the
loss came rushing back to her.

“Hey, Claire,” she said, staring down at the stone. In her mind she saw
her beautiful blonde haired sister looking back at her.

“I don’t know what I’m doing. I feel like I’m all over the place.” She
grew silent as a couple passed her. Bringing flowers had been the last thing on
her mind. Wiping away the tears she pushed aside her feelings and focused
entirely on Claire. “Did you know what you were asking back then? Is it really
okay for you with me being with your husband?”

Looking up at the sky, Rachel felt exhausted, frustrated, and wished
with all of her heart that she’d stayed in the warm bed with Chris.

This was something she needed to do more than sleeping.

“I can’t help but think you’re happy with what’s happening and at the
same time, annoyed that I’m sleeping with your husband.”

“Enough, Rachel,” Chris said. She jerked, spilling coffee down her
jacket. He cursed, taking the coffee mug from her fingers. “Be careful.”

She stared up at him, surprised that he was stood before her, glaring
down at her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“What does it look like I’m doing here?”

“I don’t know.” She’d been really quiet on her way out of the house.

“You’re not going to get your answers here.”

“I need to know Claire is okay with this.”

“She’s okay,” Chris said, tugging her away from the scene.

“How do you know if she’s okay with it?” Rachel asked.

“I knew her, Rachel. I knew what she wanted.”

“What did she want?” She stared at him, hoping he’d give her the answer
she wanted.

“She wants us both to be happy. We’ll be happy together. We both want
this, Rachel. Stop fighting it, and please, accept what you want.”

Rachel looked down at the gravestone. Chris would make her happy. She
knew in her heart that he’d be perfect for her.

“Okay, I’ll be happy, and I’ll do whatever you need me to do.” She
nodded and let him lead her out of the morbid graveyard. The air was freezing.
He walked with her all the way back to his apartment.

“I’m sorry for leaving you like that this morning. It wasn’t fair of
me.”

“No, it wasn’t fair, but I knew why you did. Being around me can be a
little too much.” He held her hand as they made their way into his apartment.
“Go and change. I’ll get some breakfast ready. We’ll handle the rental on your
apartment and deal with your work. I don’t want you returning to them.”

She agreed and left him alone. In his bathroom, she removed her soiled
coat. The coffee had spilt all the way through to her white shirt. Typically,
she’d worn her only white shirt to go out, and now it was ruined. It was just
her luck.

When she was naked, she stood in front of the mirror and stared at her
reflection. Bruises were underneath her eyes from lack of sleep. What startled
her more were the fingerprint marks on her hips. Chris’s handprints were on
her.

****

Letting out a breath Chris set up some pans on the hob. He was going to
make her some sweet French toast. Hearing the shower run, he started to dip the
bread into some beaten egg before putting it into some melted butter. His
thoughts were on Rachel and her fears about what her sister would think.

Claire wanted them both to be happy. He truly believed her sister would
be happy regardless of whom he fell for. Their happiness was for each other.

She walked out of the bathroom five minutes later wearing a bathrobe.
Her brown hair was wet from the water. Serving up some toast on a plate he
smiled over to her.

“I’m sorry for leaving you this morning.”

“Don’t worry about it. I knew where you were going.”

“Is that because you know?” she asked. Her tone sounded bitchy, and he
looked at her harshly. “Sorry, I guess I’m nervous about us being together.”

“We’ll work through it.”

Rachel nodded, grabbing a knife and fork. He poured himself some coffee
then handed her another slice of French toast.

“Are you going to eat some?”

“Yes.” Sitting opposite her, he started to eat some toast all the time
watching her, waiting for her to freak out on him. “When we’re done you can go
and get dressed, and then we’ll go and settle your apartment and job.” He
wanted to deal with Richard himself. She could be talking to the management
while he was having a word with the man.

“Sure.”

They ate in silence. After minutes passed without another word spoken
Rachel started to relax. She was like a deer caught in the headlights, waiting
for him to explode.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, meaning it.

“I know you’re not going to hurt me. I’m sorry. I’m not used to this at
all.”

“Haven’t you been in a relationship before?” he asked. Chris had always
assumed she’d been intimate with men. In fact, he knew she had. How far had
that intimacy gone? Claire never talked about her bringing men home or talking
about men. Whenever he asked her in the past about men she’d chuckled and
brushed his curiosity aside.

“I’ve not been in a relationship before.”

“At all, dating, flirting,
making
out?” At forty-two
years old he’d done his fair share of making out.

“No. I mean, I’ve had sex before. None of it was as good as last night.”
Her cheeks were bright red, and her words stroked his ego a little bit.

“I’m not talking sex. We have something special.”

“No, I’ve never felt like I do with you with other men. Claire asked me
to bring dates home, but it never felt right. I didn’t want to bring them into
my world with you guys.” She looked down at her hands. Her plate was empty.
Standing, he took the plate from in front of her and placed it in the wash
bowl.

“Were you embarrassed by us?” he asked.

“No, not at all.
I didn’t want them to get close to me. After Mom and Dad died, I didn’t
want anything to do with other men. Bringing them close would mean I had to
talk about everything all over again.” She tucked some hair behind her ear. “I
wasn’t going to open myself up like that.”

“I already knew about everything. It was easier for you to spend time
with people who wouldn’t open old wounds?”

“Yeah.
Then
when I got over it, the guys didn’t appeal to me.” She shrugged. “So I guess
I’ve never been in a relationship. I never finished college, and for some
reason, I can’t hold a steady job.” Rachel looked at him. Her bottom lip
wobbled. “I sound pitiful.”

“You’ve had it easier than most but harder than others. I can’t turn
round and say you’re pitiful. Death, no matter in what form it happens, hurts.”
He licked his lips. His throat suddenly felt dry. “I lost my parents a long
time ago. I learned to deal with the life I was handed.”

“How did they die?” she asked.

“They were shot in a bank robbery gone bad. I was ten years old and was
taken into care. I had a rough eight years until I got out on my own. I was
smart, and I had excellent grades. My life has been a lot better than when I
started. I’m handling my own,” he said. Chris was shocked to realize he’d never
once told Claire about his family. When she’d asked he’d simply told her he had
no family.

“I’m so sorry.” She wiped the tears from under her eyes.

“Don’t be sorry. We’ll figure everything out together.” He rounded the
counter, pulling her into his arms. Chris was strong enough for the both of
them. He’d teach her how to deal with him as a man in her life. “Now, promise
me you’ll talk to me about everything on your mind. I never want to wake up with
you gone again.”

“Okay.”

He leaned down claiming her lips underneath his. “Good, go and get
dressed. We’ve got some work to do.” He watched her go, checking out her ass as
she went. Fuck, her body was pure perfection to him. Every curve called to him,
and he couldn’t wait to explore his wild side with her.

There was something tempting about Rachel, and he looked forward to
tempting her. Clearing up the mess in the kitchen he checked his watch then
walked into the other spare room that he’d converted into his office. He fired
up the laptop on the desk. Going through his emails he made sure there was
nothing of importance.

Being a doctor meant everything to him. He wouldn’t risk a patient’s
life just because of a day off. Rachel sought him out. She leaned against the
doorframe, staring at him.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked.

She nodded. Shutting everything down, he followed her out of the
apartment. At the reception he gave orders with the guards to make sure that
the next time Rachel left he was notified immediately.

He cared about her too much to risk anything happening to her. Chris had
lost so much in his life. He wasn’t willing to risk Rachel, and if that meant
keeping an eye on her at all times then that was what he was going to do.

Chapter Eight

Rachel nibbled on her lip as she signed all the necessary paperwork that
gave up her apartment. Chris was talking with the landlord as she was given the
paperwork to read through. They’d already been to her workplace to pick up her
stuff. While she’d been talking to the manager, Chris had gone toward the back.
There was no shouting or anything to cause her any real concern.

He wasn’t lying about wearing the trousers. His control did comfort her,
but in light of everything that was happening she was concerned about what she
was going to do with her life.

Staying at home all day twiddling her thumbs and waiting for Chris to
get home didn’t sound ideal to her. She finished reading through the document,
wishing there was something she could do.