Keep It Secret: Time Starts Now (Part Book 1) Read online

  I can’t stop laughing.

  “Not exactly love. Yes, sometimes it is nice because you get a little extra treatment here and there, but I’m not James Bond. I can’t get a jet to pick us up in ten minutes, I’m sorry. I already had all the stuff in the car because I thought it would be a nice thing to do on our last night here. That you just started talking about it earlier was a wonderful coincidence,” I explain.

  “Or it was fate,” Ali says with a wink referring to my former band name.

  Ali sits down on the sheep fur on the floor next to me, and we have fun playing around with the chocolate fountain and enjoy eating the chocolate fruit.

  “Do you want more?” I ask Ali if she would like more fruit.

  “Yes, I definitely want more. I am not talking about the fruit or chocolate though,” Ali kisses me and takes off my shirt.

  I try to take off her clothes, but she won’t let me. She takes my hands, puts them to my sides and just shakes her head. She kisses my neck while opening my pants. I let her pull them down. Again, I try to touch her. Again she won’t allow me to. I don’t know what is going on, but I’m kind of into it. She kisses my entire body until she reaches my growing. She opens her mouth and takes it all in. I grab her by her hair and watch her as she takes me in. I feel her warm mouth around me. Her tongue playing around. Then she looks at me. We have straight eye contact. She keeps going on, and I can’t hold it in any longer, and cum inside her mouth. She swallows it and that turns me on even more.

  “Told you, I wanted more,” Ali says while wiping the corner of her mouth and smiling at me.

  “You did!”

  She tries to stand up but I hold her by her arm.

  “Where do you think, you are going?”

  “In the kitchen.”

  “No chance!” I say and pull her back to me.

  Ali looks at me with that shine in her eyes. I don’t know how someone can be so innocent, and so bad and dirty at the same time. She has all of that and she can show you with just one look. This time I don’t try to take her clothes off, I rip them off of her. I lay her on the floor. We both are lying on the sheep fur in front of the fireplace. I thrust into her because I can’t bear waiting any longer. I love feeling the inside of her. I feel like it won’t take a long time until I can come again. The way Ali looks, the way she moans, how her body tenses up. I love watching her, I can see how much she enjoys it, and it turns me on so badly. Ali pushes me off her and sits on top of me. Of course, that woman needs to have the upper hand, but I gladly let her. As soon as she is on top of me, it only takes minutes until I just can’t hold back any longer and cum inside of her.

  She stays on me and gives me a long passionate kiss.

  “Whenever you miss me, think about this moment,” she says to me before she gets off me.

  And I know that I will be thinking about this moment for the rest of my life.

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  Chapter 15

  Poppy

  I am sitting in my office and waiting for Ali to call me. She texted me earlier that she would. I haven’t heard from her the entire weekend, but knowing that she is on a trip with Henry, I didn’t expect to hear from her. I am intrigued to find out what they did though. I’ve been working for the entire weekend. I knew starting a business would be tough, but I wouldn’t have thought that it would be this hard.

  My phone rings, I see Ali’s name on the screen and answer it.

  “Hey, Ali. Oh my god, I have been dying to hear from you. How was your weekend? What did you do? Tell me everything!” I burst out in excitement.

  Ali is laughing on the other side of the phone.

  “Relax Poppy, I’ll tell you everything. It was so wonderful, I can’t even put it into words. But before coming to the cabin details, let’s start with the first surprise I got.”

  “Go on, I can’t wait to hear!”

  “Okay, so remember when I told you what my dream car was?” Ali asks me and of course, I know, everybody does because she tells everybody, and she has been doing that for years now.

  So I say “You mean the white Range Rover Sport?”

  “Exactly! Well, now I have one!”

  “Wait, what?” I ask her and can’t believe what I just heard.

  “YES! He bought me that car. He bought me a fricking Range Rover as a gift!” Ali shouts out in excitement.

  “He didn’t,” I say putting my hand over my mouth because I am in shock.

  “He sure did. He’s crazy right?”

  “Well, yes. He definitely is, but it’s a really nice gesture of him. A bit extravagant but then again, it’s not like he can’t afford to be like that. Okay, so tell me about the weekend in the woods. How was it?” I ask her and she tells me all about it.

  How they went shopping and on walks in the woods. How they, sorry, I mean how Henry cooked, and how it was nice to spend the time together like a normal couple. She also tells me that it wasn’t easier to say goodbye this time, but that she’ll just have to get used to it.

  “How about you?” Ali asks me.

  “What do you mean?”

  “What did you do this weekend? You sound a little depressed. Is everything alright?”

  It’s nice when you and your best friend know each other so well that you can tell, what they are thinking and feeling without them telling you, but it can also be annoying at times when you don’t want to speak about it.

  “Yes. No, everything is good, I’m just tired. I’ve been working,” I say and hope she buys it.

  “Poppy, you are not just tired. Did something happen? Come on, tell me!” Ali won’t drop this, I know that.

  “I’m just a little overwhelmed with all the work. And with you being gone for the weekend, it was a lot. I didn’t want to say anything, because I don’t want you to feel bad. I know you will. Honestly, I’m sure I’ll be fine tomorrow, I just had a rough day. That’s all,” I tell her and hope she won’t feel bad now.

  “I’m sorry, Poppy. I know it’s a lot and I hope you will take a break soon, too. Don’t worry, I’ll take over. I really appreciate it, that you did this for me.”

  “It’s fine, really. So, did you have the conversation about making your relationship official, I mean public?”

  “You know, I was quite impressed because I was certain he would bring it up, but then he didn’t. I thought ‘Oh wow, he finally got it’, but then on our way back he brought it up again,” Ali says frustrated.

  “So, you two had an argument again?”

  “No, I told him that I don’t want to fight, I don’t want to argue and that nothing has changed. Bringing the subject up constantly won’t change my mind and that’s that. To be fair, he didn’t have a lot of options to reply to that.”

  “Wow Ali, that’s harsh, but I understand. I guess he does, too, but just wants to show you off, and tell the world that he’s in a happy relationship. I’m sure it is not coming from a bad place,” I assure Ali.

  “Yes, I’m sure he means well and I get it. It’s horrible to face the world as this ‘single guy’ when you know you are in a relationship, and are happy about it but also with the showing-me-off-part, he actually used those exact same words, and I’m sorry but I am not a show pony. It’s hard for me too, but it’s something I have to think about carefully, and talking about it every single day doesn’t help!”

  “Ali, I know that. I’m just saying don’t be too hard on him.”

  “I know Poppy, I’m not. As I said, I do understand him. I just wish he would be more understanding towards me. Anyway, if you need some time for yourself, let me know. I’ll take over.”

  “Thanks, love, I did send you an e-mail with things you need to do. A couple of contracts you need to read through and check. I just can’t read these legal documents, no matter how hard I try,” I tell Ali and laugh.

  “No problem love, I’ll do that straight away. Call me if you need anything. Bye love,” Ali says and hangs up.

  I’m so g
lad Ali is back. This is just all getting too much. I love us having our own company, but it is just so hard. I don’t know where to start and where to finish. Sometimes I do wonder whether this wasn’t a big mistake. A split second in which I think, what if this is too much for us? What if we fail? We’ve invested so much time, money and effort. Having a job before was easy in comparison. True, I did not like working there, but it wasn’t terrible. And after eight hours I got to go home and not worry about it any longer. Now my mind is constantly on our business, but then I also think that it will all be worth it, and I am really proud of us. I check my phone and see, that it’s already one am, that’s when I decide it is time to stop working and go to bed. I have a lot of appointments tomorrow morning, and also I have to meet a friend of mine, who is about to have a baby.

  I get up at six am. I’m still so tired, I couldn’t sleep last night. I wish I could just stay in bed, but I can’t. I go to the bathroom and take a shower. I need the water to wake me up completely because I still feel like I am half asleep. I have had so little sleep the last days or weeks actually. I think I do need to talk to Ali. I need one day off. I need to take a break and recharge my batteries. I’m no use if I am not completely focused anyway. I’m sure she’ll be fine with that, she offered it anyway, and she also just had her weekend trip, so she is fully energized. It’s the perfect timing for me to step back for a day. I step out of the shower and wrap a towel around me. I see my face in the mirror. Oh wow, I have dark circles under my eyes, I look as tired as I feel. Yes, it is definitely time for me to have a day off. I get dressed and bring Prince to my mum’s house. I can’t take him with me because I’ll be running around all day long rushing from appointment A to meeting B and so on and so forth.

  My mum greets me at her door.

  “Honey, gosh you look terrible!”

  “Thanks a lot, mum,” I reply to that comment.

  “You know I don’t mean it like that, but you look awfully tired,” She explains herself.

  “I am. I have barely slept for more than four hours every night for the last couple of weeks. Now I’m just exhausted. I really need a day off,” I complain a little.

  “Yes honey, you sure do. Can’t Ali cover for you?”

  “Yes, she came back from her weekend trip yesterday. I have all these appointments today, but I’ll call her later and check if it’s okay if I take the day off tomorrow. I’m sure it won’t be a problem, she already told me to take a break. Okay, mum, I have to go now or I’ll be late. I’ll pick Prince up tonight. Love you!”

  I rush to my car and drive off. Thank god, I am already around the corner of my first appointment because otherwise, I would be late.

  I park in front of the little castle. Yes, correct, Ali and I are thinking about buying a little castle. It’s a small castle in our hometown. We always dreamed about living there when we were young, and now it’s for sale. Obviously now we don’t want to only live there, but we want to make it into a little hotel, and we already found an investor. I’m excited to meet the real estate agent, and most of all I can’t wait to see what the place looks like from inside. We’ve only ever seen it from the outside.

  “Miss McAllister?” the real estate agent greets me.

  “Mister Coleman, nice to meet you,” I take his hand and shake it.

  “The pleasure is mine, Miss McAllister.” Would you like to start the tour inside or would you rather start with the gardens?”

  “I’d rather start inside and then look at the gardens. And I’m sure you can give me all the details of the place while we look at it?”

  “Yes, of course. I came well prepared,” he says with a smile on his face.

  When I think about the commission he will get, if we buy the place, I’m thinking, he’d better be prepared. He takes me inside the building. I’m flabbergasted. It’s amazing, a little dark but nothing we couldn’t have fixed quickly.

  “So, am I right, you are planning to make this into a hotel?”

  “Yes, me and my business partner. A cute, small hotel. It’s perfect because it’s directly by the lake, so it has this amazing view, and because of the private park and gardens around it, it’s nice and peaceful. The perfect little getaway.”

  “Yes, I definitely see potential in that,” the real estate agent says as he leads me on upstairs.

  When we reach the top of the building, I explain that this part is supposed to be the private part. We would like to share it. One half is supposed to be for Ali, and the other half shall be mine. He explains that he already has spoken to an architect, and it shouldn’t be a problem to make these minor changes. He shows me around the rest of the castle, and finally, he leads me out into the gardens.

  “So, that was the castle. What do you think?”

  I love it and I know Ali would love it too, but I’m going to play it cool so I reply, “I think it’s something we could work with. There will be a lot of changes we would have to do, but I guess if the price is right that shouldn’t be anything that would stop us from buying.”

  “I’m happy to hear that you like it.”

  Again, knowing what kind of commission he’ll be getting I totally understand why he is happy.

  “Okay, so let’s talk numbers. How much?” I ask him.

  He starts rambling about everything he showed me is included and bla bla bla… I interrupt him.

  “How much? Just give me an amount!”

  “It’s for 5.000.000 Euros.”

  “Okay, I’ll have to make a call to my business partner,” I tell him and step to the side and call Ali.

  “Poppy? Everything alright?”

  “Hi, Ali. Yes, everything is fine. Listen, I’m here with the real estate agent, and he told me that the price for the estate is 5.000.000 Euros.”

  “Okay, and do you think it’s worth it?”

  “Yes. I also don’t think it’s worth it. We have to invest at least another 2.000.000 Euros into it, and with that you are right, it’s not worth it,” I tell her and hope she gets it.

  “Are you using me right now to make him go down with the price?” Ali asks me laughing.

  “Yes, I agree. We should have a look at that!”

  Ali is laughing so hard on the other line that I hope the real estate agent doesn’t hear her, also it’s making it really hard for me not to laugh with her.

  “I know that they haven’t been able to get that place sold for a year now, so go on Poppy. Keep pushing him. Our investor gave us free range with 10.000.000, so do what you can. You’re the best, Poppy.”

  “Okay, yes, I agree. We will find something else. Bye,” I say before I hang up the phone.

  I turn back around to the real estate agent and make a worried face.

  “Okay, so I just talked to my business partner and I have bad news. It’s just too expensive for what it is. She found a different place that is way cheaper but has all the things we want it to have. We would buy this place immediately if it was 3.000.000 Euros. I agree with you that it would be worth 5.000.000 Euros, but not at its current state and we would have to invest at least 2.000.000 Euros,” I explain myself to the real estate agent and hope he can’t see through my bluff.

  “Well, we can talk about the price, if that’s the only issue,” he suggests.

  “Sure, we can talk about it, but we are not willing to pay more than 3.000.000 Euro,” I say.

  “How about 4.000.000 Euros?” he suggests.

  “No, sorry. Maybe 3.500.000 Euros, but that is my last offer.”

  “I’ll have to call my agency, one moment please,” he excuses himself.

  He walks away a few meters and calls his agency. I hope I didn’t go overboard, I really do want this place. Hopefully, they will agree with our price offer.

  “Okay, I just talked to my agency and they will sell it to you for 3.500.000 Euros. We can drive to the office now and get all the paperwork ready,” the real estate agent informs me.

  “Yes, I’m happy to that,” I reply and follow him to
his office.

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  Chapter 16

  Tyler

  It’s already noon. I don’t know how the time flies by so fast, but I need more of it. I have so much work, and then also so much going on in my life. I need to take a step back and figure out how to manage everything. I take my phone out to call Henry. I’ve been wanting to do that ever since yesterday. He went on a trip with Ali and I want to know how it was.

  “Hey mate,” Henry answers the phone.

  “Hey, so are you back in one piece then? No arguments, all good?”

  “Ugh, well, the weekend was great. The ride back home not so much.”

  “Oh no, did you bring up the whole going public thing again?” I ask.

  “Yes. I don’t know why. I knew she would be mad but I still did it. I just want to be with her. I don’t want to hide it. It makes it feel like an affair, like something that isn’t allowed and I don’t want that!” Henry says sounding really disappointed.

  “Mate, I get that, but you are still in the very early stages of your relationship. Just let it go for now. In a couple of months, sure, bring it up again and make her decide but for now, just let it go. I know Ali really well and I can tell you, you will push her away from you if you keep pressing her to do something she doesn’t want to do. She is so stubborn, you are, too, and that could be a problem. One of you has to give in, and I know one hundred percent it won’t be Ali.”

  “Did she tell you what I bought her?”

  “No, I actually haven’t spoken to her yet because I haven’t had the time. I just don’t know where to start and finish right now, and Zoe is upset with me too because I don’t have enough time for her. What did you buy her?”

  “Your cousin is now officially the owner of a Range Rover Sport in white. She was so happy when I gave it to her. You should have seen her face, it was adorable.”