Protecting His Brat

by Sorcha Black

  “Sorry, I didn’t realize you’d be down here or I would have kept my eye on the clock.”

  “What were you doing up there that was so engrossing?”

  I did my best to look nonchalant. “Oh…watching a movie.”

  “Television is a waste of time and brainpower. You should take up an instrument again. You were so good at the violin.”

  I’d quit violin after a month of lessons when I was six, so I wasn’t sure where that idea was coming from.

  “I know what’s going on,” she said, snapping open her napkin and spreading it on her lap. “I’m not stupid.”

  I swallowed wrong, even though I hadn’t helped myself to food yet. It was difficult not to shoot a look over my shoulder at Blue.

  “You do?”

  “The Townsend boy. He’s been sniffing around and no doubt turning your head with compliments.”

  Relief almost made me sag back against my chair, but I stayed as scrupulously straight in my seat as I’d been trained to as a child. I didn’t bother with my best manners around Blue or Vincent and Deborah, but Mother was a different story.

  “He’s nice. He’s called a few times.”

  Mother gestured at Vincent to fill her wine glass. “Of course he’s nice, Aberdeen. You’re fabulously wealthy. I’m sure he can be pleasant for a few months, at least.”

  I busied myself with filling my plate as Mother sipped her wine, then realized how piled high it was when she blinked in disapproval. Her own plate held a slice of salmon and a spoonful of vegetables. Most of her calories were going to come from wine tonight.

  “You don’t think he likes me?”

  She snorted. “I suppose anything is possible, but how could you ever be sure?”

  There was a sound behind me, like Blue had growled, but the sound was so low it was hard to say. Mother seemed not to notice.

  Slowly, she swirled her wine glass. “It’s…nice to get attention, my dear, but I think you need to consider—” She took a sip and placed her glass very deliberately back in its place.

  I took a bite of my salmon. The sauce was one of my favorites, but I couldn’t enjoy it with Mother being so critical.

  “Yes?” I finally asked when I’d swallowed.

  She was silently watching me with an intensity that was making the hair on the back of my neck rise.

  “Well, you need to think about whether you want that kind of distraction in your life. Men can be an interesting diversion, but ultimately they’re not much more than entertainment. I’ve achieved more of my goals since I stopped having to play the good little wife.”

  “Oh.”

  “And you won’t need an heir anytime soon. You could adopt a child and dispense with the need for a partner altogether.”

  “I guess I could.”

  “If it’s companionship you’re looking for, there are always professionals for that sort of thing.”

  “Mother!”

  “For later in life, of course, not for now.” She waved a dismissive hand. “You can get whatever you like that way, and they don’t even have to speak if you don’t want to hear them prattle.”

  I swallowed the bit of fish I’d been chewing, trying not to giggle in discomfort and sound like a naïve child. Was that what my mother did for companionship?

  “Too many men will waste your money if given a chance. They’ll try to control you, and control your business interests.” She put down her wine glass and leaned forward as though we had suddenly become confidantes. “I want to grow Kincaid Holdings with you on the board, Deen. Investing in the business—helping me expand it—will increase the value of your portfolio more reliably and more quickly than any financial advisor could help you accomplish.”

  She wanted me on the board? I’d gone to school for business, but I’d thought she didn’t want me underfoot. She’d always been so dismissive of my attempts to get involved. Maybe things were finally changing?

  Mother sighed. “I’ve always done my best to shield you from the world, but you’re growing up, Aberdeen. It’s time you learned more about reality. Remember—men only want two things from rich women. Lust doesn’t last, and love is very rarely reciprocated, and will leave you with nothing if you’re not careful.”

  * * *

  I stepped out of my room and ran smack into Blue.

  Where was he going in those delicious grey track pants?

  “You’re up early,” he murmured, grinning down at me with a sexy smile that made my stomach flip-flop. He took a step back, probably because Tom was standing right outside my bedroom door.

  “I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d talk to you about the books I just read, since you get up so early. It doesn’t seem to matter when I roll out of bed, you’ve always been up for ages.”

  “You almost caught me asleep this time, but I’m on my way to the gym to work out.”

  Duh. Of course he worked out. Men didn’t get hard bodies like his without working at it.

  “Feel free to head to bed, Tom,” I said.

  Tom nodded and strolled away. I felt bad I’d barely spoken to him. He usually worked on the grounds rather than in the house, but Dustin had to switch his schedule around to be at his chemistry exam this afternoon.

  “Besides,” Blue went on, “my room is off-limits. You know that. This little game of yours is dangerous enough as it is.”

  Game? I hated that Blue referred to us that way.

  “I could come with you and talk while you work out?” I asked hopefully.

  “Suit yourself. You’ve already dismissed Tom, so I guess I’m on duty.”

  I followed him down the hall, not used to seeing my bodyguard’s back when he wasn’t dealing with a crisis. Our positions were usually reversed. The sight of his tattooed arms in short sleeves was positively orgasmic, and even in track pants he had a hot ass.

  Was it weird for a woman to leer at a man’s ass?

  There was a swagger in the way he walked that constantly drew my attention—like he didn’t just own the place but knew he could beat the crap out of pretty much anyone he encountered. A perverse part of me wanted to see him fighting hand to hand so I could drool over him.

  The home gym was empty, and I settled on a bench in the corner. I opened the granola bar I’d brought with me then nibbled on it.

  “So talk.” He laid aside his holstered gun and started stretching, acting as if he was alone. Would he take off his shirt? Now that was something I’d pay to see if I had any money.

  “Well, the vanilla book I just read was good, but I kept waiting for the sex scenes to get more exciting. The woman would mouth off, and I’d be waiting for him to dominate her.”

  “What would have satisfied you? What should he have done?”

  I shrugged. He was watching me in the mirror.

  “Come on, now. You’re here to discuss the book. What would have made it better for you?”

  “I don’t know. He should have spanked her, first of all.”

  “In vanilla relationships, spankings aren’t used as punishments. One person might swat the other person’s ass in the heat of the moment, but not to establish who was in charge.”

  “Boring.”

  “Noted.” He stood and reached for the bottom of his T-shirt. I thought I was fully prepared for the muscle-y hotness, but…

  “Oh,” I breathed.

  Black geometric designs covered every part of him I could see. How much lower did they go? How had I never even considered that Blue might be covered in tattoos instead of having just two sleeves of them?

  Blue arched a brow at me.

  I moistened my lips and sighed out a shaky breath.

  “What?”

  “You should have told me to brace myself or something. I think I had an ocular orgasm.”

  He chuckled and shook his head, moving to the free weights and choosing what he wanted. When he sat and began to do curls, I watched his forearms and biceps flex with the avid attention some people would give to a tennis match.r />
  “So what about the other books?”

  I gave myself an inward shake. “The second one was a more realistic version of BDSM. It was interesting.”

  “What was interesting about it?” He walked around the pull-up bar and hung from it for a moment before slowly pulling himself up, every muscle I could see rippling and flexing.

  What would he do if I walked over and ran my lips over all those beautiful muscles? Then again, one thing might lead to another, and we might get caught.

  Or worse, we wouldn’t, and things would go further.

  I wanted to try giving him a blowjob, but I was nervous about it—he had experience, and I didn’t know how to do it right. It would be so much easier if he forced me down and held me in place, and made me suck him…made me choke on him…

  My arousal became a deep ache that settled into my nether regions.

  Blue kept doing pull-ups, but seemed more interested in examining my expression. When he let go and dropped lightly to his feet, my mind blanked completely.

  He stalked over to me, his gaze holding a heat that had nothing to do with his workout.

  Shit. What had we been talking about?

  His finger under my chin, he forced me to look him in the eye. Sweat gleamed on every inked contour of his sculpted torso, and the scent of his heated body was sexy as hell.

  We’d been discussing something that made my face heat. Something that made me squirm. Damn…with him around that could be almost anything.

  “The book, Aberdeen,” he reminded, voice indulgent. “What part of the book with the BDSM appealed to you?”

  “Um…all the spanking?”

  “And?”

  His lips looked inviting. I’d loved kissing them.

  “When he used a belt on her?”

  He nodded in approval, and I was inspired to go on, to see if I could impress him.

  “When he teased her until she cried and begged for forgiveness?”

  “Do you think that would make a submissive sorry?” His dark eyes were dangerous, lustful.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Should a submissive get to come after a punishment like that?”

  “No. I don’t think she’d be very sorry if she got to come. If you did that to me, I’d misbehave all the time.”

  A muscle ticked in his jaw, and a thrill of apprehension shot through me. What was I doing? Why couldn’t I shut up?

  “And maybe he should have humiliated her or made her do something she didn’t want to. Something embarrassing.” I shifted, feeling like the wooden bench underneath me was too hot. “Or maybe he should use ice on her, or a knife.” I shuddered hard, my mind fuzzy and body eager. As I pressed my thighs together, I almost moaned at the jolt of pleasure from my swollen sex. What if I made a damp spot on the wood right through my pants?

  “You like those ideas, princess?”

  “For the book? Sure. That would be mean of him, but fun to read, you know? The mean book I just read was my favorite again—when she didn’t have a safeword, and he did whatever he wanted to her. He hurt her and used her. He pushed his fingers into her bottom even though she didn’t want to like it.”

  I struggled not to gasp my breaths, but every wicked thought that passed through my head was attached to a mental image of him standing over me, doing those things. And he was standing over me now, looking all lusty and menacing, and I could almost come just from his expression.

  “Blue?” I whimpered, feeling out of control, only knowing that I wanted him to kiss me, touch me. Maybe even hurt me.

  “Are you cold?” He grazed one of my rock hard nipples with the back of his knuckle.

  I cried out in desperation and surprise, the brief contact sending a jolt of pleasure straight downward. Casually, he glanced at the door, then traced my collarbones where they were visible at my neckline. I shuddered at the touch, and he made a low rumble of approval.

  “You need to stop reading dubcon, Aberdeen. You’re going to end up throwing yourself at some asshole who’ll be cruel to you, and not only in bed.” He pulled me to my feet, then wrapped an arm around my lower back, pulling me close.

  “But I want you,” I objected, aching to feel his hard lips on mine again, especially now with them inches from my own, his breath caressing my face.

  “I’m supposed to be working out, and you’re being a bad girl.”

  “No,” I whined, too far gone in my arousal to be ashamed of how ridiculous I must sound. “I’m a good girl. I’ll do anything you want—let you do anything you want.”

  He flicked his wicked tongue across my lips, but didn’t kiss me.

  “Corner. Now.” He released me and steered me toward an empty corner of the room.

  “But, what did I do?” I asked desperately, balking and trying to stop.

  He grabbed the hair at the top of my head, close to the scalp, and propelled me the rest of the way as my body responded to the rudeness of his handling.

  “I need to get a workout in, and I can’t do it with you looking at me that way.”

  “What way?” I put out my hands to stop myself when it felt like he was going to bump my forehead against the wall.

  His mouth was beside my ear, his breathing harsh and giving me all-over shivers.

  “You keep looking at me like you want me to do terrible things to you,” he ground out. “It’s not going to fucking happen, remember? We talked about this. You’ll choose someone more appropriate—and quit being a little fucking tease.”

  Every word was laced with lust, no matter what the words meant when strung together. I might be inexperienced, but I knew damned well that Blue’s ‘behave yourself’ speech didn’t mean anything of the sort. The man wanted to be convinced.

  He wanted me as much as I wanted him, and he was too hot and too hard for me to let the idea go.

  “Please, Blue,” I begged. I thrust my ass back, grinding against his thighs. Too bad the height difference didn’t let me near the bulge in his track pants unless he cooperated. “Touch me once, and I’ll be a good girl.” I caught his hand and got it onto my belly, under the edge of my shirt, then tried to coax it downward.

  “No, Aberdeen,” he grumbled. “You can’t keep sulking to get what you want from me. You’re fucking adorable, but you need to behave.”

  He bit down on the spot between my shoulder and neck, both laying claim and warning me. Debilitating arousal shot through me, and I moaned, low and breathy. He bit harder. The pain, sharp and intimate, morphed into a terrible, torturous pleasure spiraling out of control. My knees turned to mush, matching the state of my brain.

  “I need to come. Please…I’m so close,” I whispered, my voice sounding strange and small against the corner.

  He swore and grabbed my ass possessively through my leggings, then drew back and smacked it. “There needs to be a law against you wearing pants like this with an ass like yours. How am I supposed to control myself around you?”

  Since he refused to cooperate, I slid my hand between my legs.

  “No!” he barked. “Don’t touch. Fucking stand here and think about why you’re being such a damned brat.” He sounded close to losing control, and I wanted to find out what would happen, even though the idea of him losing his temper sort of terrified me. Arousal won.

  “But—”

  The door to the gym screeched open.

  Shit. Shit, shit, shit!

  Blue stepped away from me. “Which is why that move won’t free you from an attacker,” he said smoothly.

  The heat of a furious blush crept up my neck and scalded my face, and I was afraid to turn around. My guilt would be far too obvious.

  “That was probably too big of an introduction, considering how new you are to hand to hand, Miss Kincaid. Maybe you should take a walk to cool down and we’ll work on this again tomorrow.”

  I turned, fanning my face to sell his lie. “I can’t believe how overheated I am,” I said. “That’s its own workout.”

  He gave me a quelling loo
k, probably worried I’d be bad at this, but I lied to Mother all the time. I could be convincing.

  “Oh, hello, Dustin.”

  “Hi, Miss Kincaid,” he said, his eyes lingering on what I was wearing.

  I heard a growl, and the young relief guard raised his brows at Blue, and quickly moved off to the rowing machine. Jeez, it wasn’t like Dustin was leering at me. Blue was so overprotective sometimes.

  “I’m so glad you invited me to work out with you every morning,” I said, trying to lower the pitch of my voice to sound no-nonsense, like my new workout buddy, Blue. “Self-defense could come in handy. Good thinking.”

  Blue was glaring and silent as he escorted me back to my room.

  When he closed the door behind us, a thrill of anticipation made me catch my breath.

  “Corner.”

  I grumbled, but went, standing in the corner that was becoming all too familiar.

  “I think maybe you should stand in the corner this time.”

  He snorted. “You think so?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “I was answering your questions. Then you touched me and licked me, and then you got mad at me like it was my fault.” I gazed up at him sweetly. “You also bit me.”

  “You needed biting.”

  “Are you a vampire or a werewolf?”

  “Neither.”

  “Do you have rabies?”

  “Not to my knowledge.”

  “So the only explanation is that you’re out of control and need a time out, Daddy. It’s for your own good.” I stepped away from the corner and tried to propel him in that direction, but he wouldn’t budge. “Now, get over there before I give you a spanking.”

  He arched a brow at me and got into my face, making me back up.

  I wanted anything he had in mind.

  “You’re going to march into that bathroom and strip off your clothes, young lady,” he commanded, pointing in the direction he wanted me to go.

  “I am?” Oh god, was this really happening?

  “And then…”

  “Yes?” I asked, breathless.

  “Then you’re going to step into the shower and turn the water to cold.”

  “What? Why?”

  “A cold shower is an appropriate punishment for trying to tempt me,” he declared. “I’ll be waiting in the hall. Don’t even try to turn the warm water on—am I understood?”