Bent not Broken (272 page)

His mind would go crazy knowing I wasn’t wearing any underwear. I turned around and slightly jumped, acting as if he scared me. He was leaning against the inner entryway of the closet door with his arms crossed. I didn’t move. I just stared at him. He was so handsome, and his dark brown eyes looked lost and confused. I instantly felt guilty for how I was acting with him. It wasn’t fair to him.

“Look, Marcus, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be inconsiderate of your feelings and your work. If you brother feels as though this is a busy time in your life and you don’t need any distractions, then I understand. Can we at least be friends?” He didn’t say anything for few seconds. He finally began to move towards me; I was a little taken back. I didn’t know what he was going to do. When he was a foot away, he reached up and tucked a piece of damp hair behind my ear.

“The thing is, Mia, you see,” he hesitated and placed my face between his hands while caressing both of my cheeks with his thumbs, “you see the thing is with or without you, you’ll be a major distraction. All I do is think about
you
. So why can’t I be with you, knowing that you’ll have the same effect on me either way? I can’t
just
be friends.” I nodded in agreement. He made a valid point. He breathed out a crooked smile and pressed his forehead down to mine.

“So what does this mean?” I whispered with hope. My heart picked up pace with anticipation.

“Be my girlfriend.”
Girlfriend
? I couldn’t help but laugh.

“What’s so funny?” He asked amused.

“Girlfriend sounds so high
school-ish
. Don’t you think?” He laughed out loud.

“Okay, well, be my woman-friend, my lover, my partner—whatever you want to call it. I don’t care. Just be
mine
.”

“So you’re saying you want us to be exclusive and label this relationship?” I pointed my fingers between us.

“Yes.” I bit down a smile at that comment.

“What about at work? What will we be considered at your office? What will people think?”

“Don’t worry about what others think. I’m not going to hide my feelings for you. If they ask what our relationship is, I’ll simply tell them you’re my girl—no woman-friend.” He smiled. I smacked his shoulder and giggled.

“Okay, so I guess we’re exclusive then?” I asked, double-checking.

“Yes. Now come here.” He pulled me in and kissed me long and hard.

Chapter Eleven

The next morning I awoke feeling sore but refreshed. Marcus and I spent another magical night together, and I couldn’t help but smile at the realization when I opened my eyes. I stretched my arms over my head and looked over beside me. He fell asleep with me last night, but he wasn’t there. When I glanced at the alarm clock on my nightstand it was ten minutes to seven. I reached for my phone and noticed a text from him.

Marcus (5:30am): I had to go home to get ready for work. You looked too peaceful to wake up. It was tempting though. I miss you already. See you in the office, babe. ;)

No one would have been able to wipe the grin off my face. This was how he made me feel: like a teenage girl. I threw my head back into the pillow and stared at the ceiling. Last night was absolutely wonderful. Three times in one night had to be a world record for sure—well at least in my sex life it was. It was like we needed it desperately. I could feel his stress, and he could feel mine. The minute our bodies connected, all of our problems and issues were wiped away and solved.

We didn’t talk about work or family or anything depressing. Instead, we talked about our favorite movies, foods, hobbies, and shows. We laughed and made fun of each other. I snuck pizza into the bedroom once Jeremy was asleep. We ate and talked some more. To be able to see a side of him that he said most people didn’t see made me feel special. I had a feeling we were going to be good for one another.

The alarm went off, so I jumped out of bed. Once my feet hit the ground, I regretted moving so quickly. My thighs and hips felt sore, like I’d been doing lunges and squats all night. Before hopping into the shower, I stretched my legs. I didn’t know how much longer I could put up with this soreness. A nice hot bath would soothe the pain. I walked into the shower and completed my morning routine, which was similar to my nightly one. I applied my makeup, blow-dried my hair, and headed to my closet to find something to wear.

When I walked into my closet, I looked on the floor where my yoga pants lay, the ones that Marcus ripped off last night. I laughed at myself. My closet would never be just a closet anymore; it would now be a steamy memory added to the ones we’d also made on our weekend trip.

Today I decided to wear a simple V-neck black dress. It fit perfectly around my curves, but it wasn’t too tight. My red pumps matched the color of my glossy lips. I wondered what Marcus would think of me with red lipstick; I usually wore a nude lip gloss. I shrugged my shoulders and headed towards the kitchen. Jeremy was not out of his room yet, and we still had time to spare. Only because I was in an
awesome
mood, I made us coffee and cheese omelets.

“You made breakfast?” Jeremy asked with an eyebrow raised as he walked into the kitchen, looking more handsome than yesterday in a navy blue suit.

“Yes, I’m in a good mood this morning.” I said giving him a full-toothed grin and sliding the plate to his end of the island. He stopped it with his hand and settled down on a stool.

“Did DeLuca sleep over? And you were
extremely
loud last night by the way.” I tossed a fork in his direction. He caught it and I rolled my eyes.

“
Oh
please, how many times have I had to endure the loud screams of your female friends’ orgasms?” I placed his mug in front of him and walked back to the other side of the island, deciding to eat standing up. He looked up at me and winked.

“My bad, I know how to please the ladies. What can I say?” Ugh, barf alert! I shook my head and continued eating my breakfast. To be honest the few times I’d had sex with Jeremy, I was drunk. I really don’t remember if I faked my orgasms or not, but I decided to keep that to myself, not wanting to hurt his feelings.

“So you guys seem to be getting serious, huh?” He said while taking the last bite of his omelet.

“Uh, yeah, he actually asked me to be his
girlfriend
.” I hesitated on the word “girlfriend,” not sure how it sounded.

Jeremy choked on his coffee. “Excuse me, did you just say girlfriend?” He cleared his throat and continued when I nodded. “Wow, you guys are taking things a little too seriously.”

I bit my lip. “Do you think it’s too soon? I mean I really like him
a lot
. I feel happy around him.”

Jeremy’s expression grew unreadable, which was a first, since I knew him so well. His every crease or wrinkled expression wasn’t new to me, but this was definitely new. It made me a little nervous. “Mia, you deserve to be happy, really, and if Marcus makes you happy, then, no, it’s not too soon.”

“I barely
know
him.” I expressed.

“No one ever knows a person right away. You could be with someone for ten years and learn something new about them. People are always changing. Don’t let that scare you.”

“Wow.” Taken back by his sincere words, I was shocked.

“What?” He said, standing then placing his dishes in the sink.

I laughed once. “I never had a serious conversation with you. It’s different. You’re usually goofy or telling a dirty joke. It’s nice for change. Thank you.”

“Yeah, well don’t get used to it. You look hot by the way.” He smacked my ass.

“And he’s back!” I yelled, pointing my finger in the air. We laughed and headed out the door.

****

“Good morning, Jeremy and Mia,” Stacy, the blond receptionist greeted. “Mia, Mr. DeLuca is in the small conference room. He would like you to go there first.”

“Thanks Stacy. Jeremy, see you later!” I smiled and winked at him. He was busy flirting with Stacy.

Quickly I made my way back to the small conference room. The door was open, so I stepped right in. My body came to a complete stop, frozen for a few seconds analyzing what I was witnessing. Marcus sat at the head of the table, same as yesterday. This time a brunette was sitting on top of the table facing him. She was looking down playfully, talking and laughing, and Marcus was amused by whatever she was saying. His smile grew bigger at the sight of me. “Hey, baby!” The woman looked over her shoulder to glance at me. Marcus stood up from his chair and made his way in my direction. He embraced me with a hug and kiss. The woman stood up beside Marcus’ seat, facing our way.

“Uh, good morning, babe.” I said. He grabbed my hand and led me back to where he was just seated.

“Mia, this is Stephanie; she’s my assistant. She was out yesterday. Stef, this is Mia; she’s one of the new externs and my girlfriend.” Stephanie eyes widened. She looked shocked.

“I didn’t know you had a girlfriend, Marcus. Ah, hi, it’s nice to meet you.” She extended her arm. I did as well, and we awkwardly shook hands.

“Yeah, it’s kind of new.” There was really nothing else I could say; it was true. We were new, and I knew her reaction would be the same as everyone else’s that worked in the firm. She nodded and looked at the both of us. I felt small, knowing that she was probably thinking, “
Why her
?” Marcus was oblivious to the whole thing. He was just standing there with a huge smile on his face. For some reason, I didn’t know why he was so happy. Was it because this was the first time he introduced me as his girlfriend?
Or
was it because of whom he introduced me to.

“Well, I’ll get to my desk. Mr. Di Angele will be here in about twenty minutes. I’ll bring him back once he arrives.”

“That would be great, Stef, thanks.” She waved at me and then walked away.

“So,
babe,
” he playfully said, slouching down so that we were at eye level, “you look beautiful as always.
Mmmh
, and those red lips.” He leaned in to kiss me, but I pulled back. “She’s the one you slept with.” His brows pulled in.

“H-how did you know?”

“I’m a girl, Marcus. We know.” I shook my head and began to walk away.

“Wait, babe. Come here. You’re mad?” Hearing the desperation in his voice, I turned to face him. I had no right to be mad. The feeling I had was probably the same exact feeling he felt about Jeremy and me. But I’d just seen the hurt in Stephanie’s eyes: she was devastated. She loved him.

“No, I just wish I was warned. I knew she still worked for you, but as your assistant? That’s, I don’t know, going to be hard for me to get used to.”

“The same way it’s going to be hard for me to know that Jeremy sleeps in the same apartment as you every single night.” I sighed. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t throw Jeremy in your face.”

“No you’re right. How about we just leave our past sexual relationships in the past and just focus on us? We have to trust each other, right?”

“Agreed,” he said while bringing that gorgeous dimple back to life. His large strong hands wrapped around my face as he lowered his head and pressed his soft lips against mine. After a few seconds, he leaned back from the kiss and smiled. “Oh, I almost forgot. Come over to my house next Sunday for dinner with my family.”

That caught me off guard. It was so random. “What? Your family?”

“Yeah, we all have dinner every Sunday. We usually take turns in each of our homes. Next week is my house. I’d like to introduce you to them.” He seemed ecstatic about the idea.

“
Oh
, I don’t know, Marcus, what about your brother?” I would love to meet his family, but if they were anything like his brother, I’d rather not. He leaned in and ran his fingers through my hair, and the tension immediately evaporated.

“I spoke to my brother this morning, and my family will love you. I promise.”

“How did your brother take it?” I bit the corner of my lip, anticipating the rejection.

“He’ll get over it.” His hands trailed down my lower back, and he pulled me closer to him.

“Why doesn’t he like me?” It hurt to think that his brother thought so little of me.

He shook his head. “It’s not
you
per se. He just thinks you’ll be a distraction.”

“A distraction from
what
?”

He shut his eyes and heavily sighed. “Mia, I can’t tell you that.” And that was the moment when I realized he was in something deeper than I thought. Marcus had just admitted to me that there was another part of his life he couldn’t tell me about. The question was whether I was willing to live that way. Then I thought of Jeremy and our talk this morning when he said that you could be with someone for ten years and not fully know them.

I gave him an understanding smile. “Okay Marcus, but you’ll have to tell me one day. I’m not saying tomorrow, but one day, even if it’s a year from now, promise?” He nodded.

****

The rest of the morning went well. We met with Mr. Di Angele, and he
loved
me. He was impressed with all the case law I found relevant to his case; he even went so far as to ask me to be present at his trial. Marcus, of course, said it was fine. I was thrilled.

After the meeting, we went around the office, and he further introduced me to a few attorneys, the partners of the firm, and some of the paralegals, all who learned that we were dating. At first it was awkward, but after the third person, it started to sound nice being introduced as an item.

I was a little disappointed that Marcus couldn’t have lunch with me. He already had plans, and Jeremy asked Stacy out for lunch, so I was left to fend for myself. I decided to grab something from the deli up the block and hide in my office.

Halfway through my sandwich, I was getting ready to send a “thinking of you” text message to Marcus when I heard his office door open and close. Two sets of footsteps stomped across the floor. Then there were low voices. I couldn’t hear what was going on, so I dragged my chair closer to the wall to have a better listen.

A man’s voice began speaking first. “So Marky, are you going to finish what you started with this job, or are you going to bail on me like you did Saturday?” The man’s strong Boston accent and similar raspy tone allowed me to place the voice as Uncle Louie.