Dare piped up, “We don’t like some of what we found out, Pop. But we’re happy to continue with the existing business structure for now. Tommy and I have a few changes in mind but slowly we’ll make those changes so it doesn’t hurt the company and so it preserves relationships that have been built. We think it’s best we get you to sign over with lawyers. And you retire. Or, you don’t retire but we part ways with the business here. You made a deal that he got married he’d take over. He’s getting married so it’s time.”
I added, “You got a problem with us running things the way we want to run them, clean, we part ways now businesswise. You give us the reins you continue to get residuals of everything we decide to keep doing. You don’t, we leave it in your hands and we go do something else.”
Pop gave a slight shrug without looking us in the eyes, “We’ll talk after. Let me think about it.”
I didn’t like that one bit. It felt like a game I wasn’t interested in playing.
“Alright, Pop. Dare and I, we’ll be back in the morning. Sleep well. Glad you’re alright.”
Pop closed his eyes and my brother and I made our way out, nodding at the on-site security guard stationed outside his door.
Dare and I exchanged knowing glances on the way out. We didn’t like his attitude. He, clearly, hadn’t been thrilled with ours, either. He was a man used to calling the shots, a man who thought of his sons as his right and left hands, not as men who would pull a mutiny over on him.
Tia
When I woke up, Tommy was watching me sleep.
“Hey,” I said.
“Hey,” he answered and his eyes twinkled.
“Isn’t it kinda creepy stalkerish that you were just watching m
e sleep?”
His mouth quirked up into a lazy smile, “I’ll stalk you to the ends of the earth, baby girl.”
I curled into him, knowing it was true but for the first time, not really feeling creeped out by it.
“I smell bacon,” I jolted upwards.
“Sarah’s here today,” Tommy said, “You go. I gotta sleep for a few hours. Wake me at 2?”
“How do you want me to wake you?” I squirmed against him friskily.
“Why don’t you try a few things now and I’ll pick my fave?” he suggested. I disappeared under the blankets and took his cock with my mouth. He let me finish him that way and it was empowering to watch and feel him shatter like that, his hands in my hair, his body trembling as he came. It was rare that he didn’t look after me in return so I didn’t feel slighted when he almost immediately fell asleep afterwards. He’d been running his fingers through my hair while my head rested on his belly and his hand just sort of flopped. I kissed his abs, kissed his chin, and then covered him up and headed to the bathroom for a shower.
A little while later, I found my way to the kitchen and sure enough, Sarah was making breakfast. She poured me a coffee and I sat at the breakfast bar and took a sip. I’d only seen her put one sugar in it. She just wasn’t giving up, was she? When her back was turned I put two more sugars in. She saw me do it and snickered at me.
We chatted amicably while she made breakfast and she smiled big at me when I got in there and started popping bread into the toaster. Tommy had come down, talking on the phone and walked into his office. His arm went around my waist as I was buttering toast and he scooped me against him, my back to his front, and leaned down and kissed my temple, “It’s only 10:00, honey, you should be sleeping!”
“Yeah, something’s come up. Looks like I’ll have to sleep when I’m dead.” He reached and snagged a piece of toast, “Call you later.”
“Kay.” I nuzzled back into his warmth, “Don’t get dead.” How this man could seriously function on zero sleep so often was beyond me!
“I won’t. Love you,” he said huskily into my ear and then kissed my lobe, leaned over and kissed me quickly on the lips and I told him I loved him too, and then he was gone.
Suddenly, it was like the life was being squeezed out of me. Sarah Martinez had her arms around me and she was shouting in Spanish while hugging me, hard.
“Whoa,” I laughed, taken totally aback, dropping the butter knife to the floor.
She was shouting to the ceiling in Spanish and then she kissed both of my cheeks and my forehead with a flourish.
The toaster popped so she let go of me, I got a fresh knife all red-faced, and she said, while wiping up the floor with a soapy paper towel, “I never thought I’d hear that boy tell a woman those words. You’ve been the prescription, Chiquita, the prescription.”
“Yeah, well it’s not all ice cream sundaes and walks on the beach, lemme tell ya,” I started and then stopped myself. I bit my tongue.
She gave me a knowing smile, “Peaks and valleys exist in all relationships. All marriages.”