Overwhelm Me (16 page)

Donovan cuts his eyes over to me and smirks. I cast my eyes down and blush a little. Why do I get so embarrassed by looking at him? I mean, honestly! I’ve seen him completely naked, and I still feel silly just watching him.

Donovan grips my hand tighter. We pull into the Lenox Square Mall. He drives around to Bloomingdale’s. Oh my, Bloomingdale’s? He’s kidding, right? Why does he pick the most ridiculously expensive stores? He pulls into a parking space and puts the truck in park. “Now, before you say anything, as we discussed, I can buy you whatever I want. So, I don’t want any complaining about the price.” Donovan jokingly warns.

I shrug my shoulders, knowing I shouldn’t argue with him. Donovan steps out of his door, and I watch him walk over to my side. This guy is so over the top. I never expected him to spend so much money on me. I hope he doesn’t think I’m some sort of gold digger. I frown at the thought as Donovan opens my door. He cocks his head at me curiously. I flash a wide grin as he helps me down. He shuts my door, and we walk hand in hand into Bloomingdale’s.

The store looks huge from the outside. I gulp, a bit nervous. I don’t know how to shop in a place like this. Donovan holds the door for me. As I walk in, I take in the size of the store. Wow. We don’t have anything like this back in Lynchburg. I see beautiful clothes on mannequins that are better built that I am. I see people walking around with Coach handbags and sky high heels.

Back home, I used to shop at American Eagle and Aeropostale. I’m usually a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl. I have a feeling that Donovan isn’t taking a detour through Bloomingdale’s to get there, either.

We walk up to the counter, and the woman behind it is on the phone and points up her manicured index finger to let us know she’ll be just a minute. Donovan fits in around here.

He’s a beautiful person, and well, I’m not. I feel so awkward standing here waiting for the salesperson, or judging by her name tag, Abigail, to help us. I knot my hands together as I look around the store. You can tell by looking at these women that their husbands are rich. Their faces are made smooth by Botox, their dresses are obviously expensive, and their shoes cost more than my rent for the year. Will I ever fit into Donovan’s world?

As we wait for Abigail to get off the phone, Donovan says that I should look around. “I’m going to get a personal shopper for you.” I start to say not to do that, that’s too much money and a waste of time. But he added, “Oh, don’t worry, it’s complimentary.”

I nod and smile as I start off to the ladies department that’s right in front of me. I start thumbing through the racks of dresses, and my heart stops as I see some of the price tags. “Holy shit,” I mutter to myself. Seriously, three hundred dollars for a dress? Okay, I know it’s made by a top name designer or whatever, but that’s ridiculous. I shake my head in disapproval and look over Donovan’s way. He’s speaking to Abigail, and she is so blatantly flirting with him, batting her fake eyelashes and biting her lip. I feel the blood rush to my head, and I start to fume. Oh, hell no! I make my way back over to the two of them.

When I reach them, Donovan’s face is impassive, not flirting back with her. Abigail straightens as soon as she realizes I’m standing next to Donovan, and I narrow my eyes at her. She clears her throat and says, “Of course, sir, I’ll get that personal shopper right out for you. Just wait here.”

“Thank you,” Donovan says curtly. He turns his attention back to me and smiles. “So, did you find anything that you like?” Donovan wraps his arms around my shoulders. See, he’s mine, Abigail.

“Well, I know I don’t like Miss Everything About Me Is Fake.” I cross my arms and sneer. “She was hitting on you, wasn’t she?”

Donovan laughs, and I arch my eyebrows up. “Sorry, baby. I don’t mean to laugh. You are just so cute when you’re angry.” He chuckles a little more. “Yes, she was flirting, but I didn’t really pay much attention, just asked her for a shopper.”

“Well, I noticed.”

“It’s not a big deal, really.”

“Is this something I’m going to have to get used to? Women throwing themselves at you?” I narrow my eyes at him.

Donovan hold his palms up at me. “Whoa, baby. First, she certainly did not throw herself at me.

Second, I’m not interested in her.”

I snort. “Well, I just don’t like it. I’m a very jealous person.”

“Then we are one in the same.” He smirks at me. Bastard. Stop looking so sexy.

I keep my arms crossed across my chest.

“Are you gonna throw a fit, Miss Marshall?” Donovan eyes me warily.

“No!” I almost stomp my foot, but I refrain. “Look, I’ll get used to it. Never mind.” I play with the C

on my new necklace.

Donovan rolls his eyes and chuckles. “Whatever you say, baby. Oh, that must be our personal…” He stops short. I hear him groan and see him put his hand on his brow like he has a headache.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“It’s a…girl from my past,” he mutters.

“Oh, fantastic! This should be loads of fun.” I put my hands on my hips. The personal shopper stops a few feet in front of us. And of course, she is drop dead gorgeous. Her hair is ash blonde, and it frames her face. Her hazel eyes are bright, and they have flecks of gold in them. She is slim, and her black pant suit fits her perfectly. Her lips are painted red, and they curve up when they see Donovan.

“Oh, wow! Donovan! How wonderful to see you!” The “ex” walks up to him and puts her arms around his neck as she kisses his cheek. He looks at me, and he seems to be extremely uncomfortable with this situation. He doesn’t hug her back. The anger starts to boil inside of me.

“Uh, hi, Jennifer,” Donovan stammers.

“Why haven’t you called me back? I’ve been calling you for weeks now. Did I do something wrong?” Jennifer tries to rub the red lipstick mark off his face with her fingers. Am I completely invisible?

I can’t stand it anymore. “Because he’s seeing me, that’s why he hasn’t called you back!” I nearly shout at her, causing several customers to look in our direction. I know my face is red with fury, and I’m ready to rip her hair out. Obviously, I take Jennifer by surprise, and she instantly backs away from Donovan. Her face is beet red.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” At least she has the decency to apologize. She casts her eyes down and says, “Maybe I should go get someone else to be your personal shopper.” Jennifer shoots Donovan a hateful glance and then practically runs away.

Donovan stares at me like a deer caught in the headlights.

“Whoa, I didn’t know you had that in you.”

“I just finished telling you I’m a very jealous person.” My eyes dart to watch Jennifer slip into the door she came out of.

“Yeah, I know, but still. That was surprising.” His eyes are still wide, but he looks amused by my reaction.

“Do we have to shop here? I really don’t need a personal shopper, and I can just wear one of my own dresses for graduation.” My voice is louder than I expected. I really want to leave this store before another one of Donovan’s flings will show up.

“No, we don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Donovan is quiet, unsure of how to take me right now. I am trying to calm my breathing before I send myself into a panic attack. “We can go wherever you like.”

I start walking toward the corridor of the mall. Donovan follows behind me. I just need to blow off some steam. I know it’s not his fault that Jennifer works here, and he didn‘t know it. He also told me that he’s done the one night stand thing. But I have to know one thing. I stop and turn to him. “When did you sleep with Jennifer?”

Donovan stops short, and his face falls. I frown at him. He looks uncomfortable again, his body tense, a grim line forming on his lips. I start tapping my foot and cross my arms across my chest, waiting for his answer. As the seconds tick by, we standoff. Stubborn blue eyes against fierce green. I am using all of my self control not to walk away from him, from this.

Donovan sighs as he gives in. “It’s been a few weeks, maybe a month.” He shoves his hands in his pockets, and his eyes stay on mine. Okay, I get that he had all these one night stands and friends with benefits, but it doesn’t make it any easier to stomach. “I met her at a bar. We got drunk. She invited me back to her place, and . . . you kind of know the rest.”

Fury builds inside me. “So, was that what I was supposed to be? A girl you met at a bar and wanted to fuck?” It comes out louder than I expected, but I am so angry. I’m not sure who I’m mad at, myself, Donovan, or all the women he has taken to bed. I know he’s told me differently, but Matt has caused me to have so much self doubt. He was screwing his ex, coerced me into sex, and knocked me up.

Donovan moves a step closer. “No, No, not at all. I knew you weren‘t like the rest of the chicks I slept with.” He takes another step, closing the distance between us. “I told you this before.

Yes, I have a past, just like you-” I shoot him a look. “Okay, not just like yours, but nonetheless, a past that is full of ugly skeletons. The point is, we both have to understand this, and if you want us to work, like I do, then we really have to put a lot of effort into it. It’s just not going to be easy.”

I hang my head. I am ashamed, yet I can’t control the urge to be angry. I want to trust him, but can I? Will he break my heart in ways I didn’t think possible? This relationship just started, and I’m already exhausted. Now that I have Donovan, every fiber in my being wants to hang on to him. My soul is torn in two. One half says stay and see where this goes. The other half says run far away and don’t look back, that he will only hurt you. The hard lump in my throat makes my breath hitch. I don’t want to cry again. His past is either something I have to accept or turn my back on. Looking at Donovan, I make the decision to try to make this relationship to work. I close my eyes and find the resolve to speak again.

When I open my eyes, Donovan is standing right in front of me. I manage not to spill any tears.

He reaches up to my face and traces my jawline with his fingertips. I lean into his touch. “Don’t fight it, Allie. You want me as badly as I want you.” I nod my head, agreeing wholeheartedly.

The only thing is my insane jealousy. If Jennifer is any indication of how pretty his “conquests”

are, then I’m going to have a hard time getting over this issue.

“I want to work for this, more than anything. It’s just…I have to get over the fact that you have such an ‘interesting’ past. But you also have to understand my past and how affected I am by it.”

My eyes cast downward.

Donovan nodded as he put some stray hair behind my ear. “I understand, baby doll. We both need to have patience with each other.” He slides his fingers over my lips and down my throat, sending shivers throughout my body. “Just promise me that you won’t run if it gets hard. I have to know that you aren’t going to take off when there’s a bump in the road,” he whispers. My hand reaches up to touch his.

“I know, babe. I know.” I slip my arms around his waist. Donovan caresses me with his strong arms. I nuzzle into his neck, inhaling the scent of the body wash we shared this morning. I tighten my grip on him. “I promise.” What I don’t say is that I’m falling insanely fast for him. My mind reels, wondering how many women Donovan has been with. Do I even want to know?

Shit, does he even know? Will there be more outbursts from me if we run into another one of his past girls? I push all the nasty thoughts into the back of my brain. Donovan puts his fingers through my hair and pulls me in to kiss my forehead. “Now, where do you want to go?”

I look at him with big green eyes. “Let’s just walk until I find something I like.” Donovan smiles, his eyes sparkling. He looks like a weight has been lifted off his chest, and he even seems like he is standing a little taller. He drapes his arm around my shoulders and brushes his lips on my temple. I wrap my arm around his waist, and we walk to see what stores the mall has.

The mall is huge, and Donovan stays patient with me as I still can’t find a store that seems to suit me. I finally spot an American Eagle, and I pull Donovan in the store. I feel so much more comfortable in here. This is my style, not Bloomingdale’s or Nordstrom’s. I look through the summer dresses, and I find a perfect bright red cross back dress. It’s not a graduation dress, but nonetheless it’s cute. I hold it up for Donovan to see, and he grins. I see an open dressing room and make sure no one is in it. I close the door behind me and undress. I slip the red dress over my head. I see Donovan’s feet in front of the door. The dress fits perfectly and hangs to my mid thigh. It’s so bright, and the color looks good against my pale skin. I open the door to find Donovan standing directly in front of me. His mouth parts, and I hear him inhale.

“So, do you like?” I spin around for him to get a good view. I feel almost giddy, and to have Donovan’s gaze sliding over me makes me giggle out loud. All of a sudden, Donovan gently pushes me back in the dressing room and shuts the door.

He doesn’t say a word. He runs his hands over my ass and pulls up the hem of the dress, exposing my panties. I gasp at his boldness and his need for me. His lips seal around mine. I throw my hands into his chocolate colored hair and push myself closer to him. His tongue flicks over mine, and it makes me whimper. His hands slide from my backside to my hip, then further down. He grabs my thigh and hikes it up. I rest my foot on the bench. I can’t believe how turned on I am right now, how intensely hot this is. Donovan’s fingers push my panties to the side, and he slides two inside me while he palms my clit. I dig my fingers into his shoulders and bite my lip to stifle my moan. Donovan continues his sweet pleasurable torment, making me breathless and insane. His able fingers start to cause the delicious pressure again, and I start curling my toes.

As I get closer to the edge of my release, Donovan increases his speed, and his mouth trails kisses down my throat. “Cum for me, Allie,” he whispers in my ear. Just like that, as if his words command my actions, I have a completely mind blowing orgasm. I lean into him, biting into his shoulder in order not to scream his name in this very public place.

Donovan smiles as he pulls his fingers out of me and slides my dress down back over my hips.