by Force, Marie
“What do you think?” he asks after showing me around.
“It’s fabulous. I can see why you love it so much.”
He slides his arms around me from behind. “We’re completely alone here.”
“What about security?”
“None, other than the gates that surround the place. Hardly anyone except my family and closest friends even know I have this place. It’s where I go when I truly want to run away from it all.” He tugs on the zipper to my dress as he drops hot, openmouthed kisses on my neck. “Since we’re completely alone and the house is fully stocked with everything we’ll need, it’s probably a good time to tell you this will be an entirely naked honeymoon.”
I’ve been so caught up in what he’s doing to my neck that his words take a second to register. “Wait. What did you say?”
“You heard me. Six full days. No clothes allowed.”
“By no clothes, you mean—”
With the zipper fully open, he runs his finger down my side, over my ribs, stopping at my hip. “No. Clothes. I want to see you and only you the whole time we’re here.”
The thought of it has my entire body zinging with sensation. My heart is beating faster, and my skin suddenly feels tight and constricted. “We can’t loll around in the nude for six full days.”
“You don’t think so?”
“If that’s what you want, why did you pack a bag?”
“I’m glad you asked. Once you remove your dress and everything you’re wearing under it, you can unpack our bag and put everything on the bed. I’ll be in shortly.”
I stand there for a second, feeling frozen in place.
“Natalie?” He tucks my hair behind my ear. “You know how to say no, sweetheart.”
His softly spoken words remind me of the rules of our game and the power I have in a single word that can stop everything. I don’t want to stop this. I want to have this experience with him, to see what he has planned for us, to enjoy every second of the time we have alone together.
Our lives will be busy and complicated once we return to reality. To have this slice of time completely alone where we’re able to explore our every desire is exciting, even if the thought of six full days in the nude is disconcerting. Before him, I didn’t like to be naked in the shower, a thought that makes me smile as I pick up the duffel bag and head for the bedroom.
When he showed me the room, he opened the doors to a deck. A warm breeze billows into the room, making the gauzy white curtains flutter. The ceiling fan is made of bamboo and palm fronds, and the bed is a huge four-poster with white linens. I place the bag on the bed, and after I remove the dress that is barely clinging to my shoulders, I unzip the bag.
He hasn’t brought a single stitch of clothing for either of us, but he has brought a large selection of toys and other items designed for sensual pleasure My husband has clearly put a lot of thought and planning into this honeymoon I didn’t know we’d be taking. Anticipating his arrival and whatever else he has planned, I move quickly to remove my clothes. I hang my dress in the walk-in closet. It’s the only item in the huge closet, which makes me giggle. He’s made sure there are no other clothes to be found in the house.
When I step back into the bedroom, Flynn is standing in the doorway. He’s beautifully, gloriously naked and fully aroused. “What do you think of what I brought?”
“I was afraid we’d be bored with this all-naked-all-the-time business, but I see you thought of that possibility and planned ahead.”
His smile stretches across his face. “I did indeed.”
I eye the items on the bed with a feeling of trepidation that’s countered by overwhelming desire. “So what do you want to do?”
“I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. How about we eat and take a swim?”
And he loves to keep me deliciously off balance by revving me up and then making me wait.
“Am I expected to cook in the nude as well?”
“Of course not. There’s a lovely local woman who made us enough food to feed an army. All we have to do is heat and eat.”
“Mmm, locally made Mexican food?”
“Only the best for my wife.” He holds out a hand to me, and I cross the room to him. His arms slide around me, bringing me in tight against his body. “We’re going to have the best time. I promise.”
“I have no doubt.”
Chapter 19
Natalie floats on the surface of the pool, her hair spread out like a mermaid’s, the tips of her magnificent breasts breaking the surface. I love her like this—uninhibited, relaxed and free of the worries she’s carried with her for so long. I’ll never forget the shocked look on her face when I informed her that this would be a totally naked honeymoon. Her shock was quickly replaced by stark curiosity and desire that set me on fire for her.
I slide through the water, moving slowly so I can take her by surprise when I bend over to draw the tip of her nipple into my mouth. Her eyes open, and her hand slides languorously through my hair. Cradling her in my arms, I tease her nipple for long moments, as if I don’t have another care in the world, which I don’t. Then I bite down on it, as hard as I dare, drawing a gasp from her.
“I want you to go inside, choose three items from what I brought, and put them on the bedside table with the bottle of lube and the red ribbon. Put the rest of the toys in the drawer in the table on your side of the bed. Once you’ve made your choices, I want you on your knees in the middle of the bed, facing the door, head down, hands folded. Any questions?”
“Just one.” She looks up at me, her gaze open and trusting. “How long will you make me wait for you?”
“Not long.” I put her down, kiss her and send her along with a pat on her gorgeous bottom. I can’t wait to see what she chooses for our playtime.
Despite the cool, refreshing swim, I’m on fire after receiving his instructions. I dry off from the pool and leave the towel outside to dry. I pad inside, marveling at how he has me walking around naked like it’s the most natural thing in the world to me when only a few weeks ago, it would’ve made me incredibly uncomfortable.
It’s one of many things that has changed since we met. The toys lined up on the bed are a reminder of other things that have changed. I study each item carefully. Knowing I don’t have much time to decide ramps up the tension and intensifies the throb between my legs that began with Flynn’s attention to my nipple in the pool.
Feeling rushed and off balance—exactly what he intended—I choose the chain with two clamps, the balls on a string and one of the candles, figuring to give myself a break with the last selection. With my choices made, I gather up the other items and put them away before arranging myself on the bed per his instructions.
Even knowing I won’t have to wait long, the anticipation grows and multiplies with every minute that passes. Before long, my legs are quivering, and I feel like I could hyperventilate as I rethink my choices.
Much later, my eyes flutter open to discover the room itself has gone dark. I glance at the clock on the bedside table, and I’m shocked to discover it’s an hour later than it was when I came in here. An hour. My God…
Flynn is snuggled up to me, his front to my back, his arm around me. He kisses my shoulder. “Welcome back, sweetheart.”
“What happened?”
“You came so hard, you passed out.”
“That’s a thing? That can happen?”
“Yeah, baby. It happens.”
“How long was I out?”
“Only a few minutes. I was right here with you the whole time, making sure you were okay.”
“Wow.”
I cover the arm he has around me with my hand. “Did you…”
“Oh yeah. Big-time.”
He cups my breast and squeezes my sore nipple gently between his fingers. “You did so great, Nat. You gave yourself over to me. You gave me your trust and your desire. You gave me everything. It means so much to me to receive those things from you and to know you love me.”
His words of praise and approval go straight to my heart. “I do. I love you so much.”
“I love you more.”
“No way.”
“You just have to accept it.”
“Never.”
His low chuckle makes me smile.
“Did we really just have sex for an hour?”
“Yep.”
“Damn, you weren’t kidding when you said you know how to draw it out and make it last.”
“But the ending…”
“The ending was spectacular, as promised.”
“Glad you think so. Tell me more about how it was for you. I want to know everything.” As he speaks, he runs his fingers through my hair, which calms and soothes me. Gone is the Dom, and in his place is the tender lover who has initiated me into a decadent life of sensual extremes.
We talk through every step of what we just did, the communication as arousing as the acts. There’s something else I want to tell him. I just hope I can find the right words. “I was thinking…”
“About what?”
“I love that what we do together is nothing at all like what happened to me so long ago. It’s not even remotely similar.”
“I’m so glad to hear you say that.”
“Feels like an epiphany of sorts to realize one has nothing at all to do with the other.”
“No, it doesn’t.” He nuzzles my shoulder and his hand is between my legs, stroking me until I’m quivering all over again.
“Flynn…”
“Yeah, baby?”
“I want to come.”
His low growl is the only warning I have before he rolls me onto my back and buries his face between my legs. It takes three strokes of his tongue to finish me off.
I open my eyes to him looking down at me with a goofy smile on his face.
“Why are you smiling like that?”
“Because I love you. I love that you just asked me to make you come. I love having you here in this place that I love and knowing we have days and days to spend together with no one and nothing to bother us.”
“Don’t you mean days to spend naked together?”
He drops his head to my chest. “Mmm.”
I run my fingers through his hair, loving the silky feel of it. “You’ve actually brought me here to make me your sex slave, haven’t you?”
“You’ve figured me out.”
We stay like that, wrapped up in each other, for a long time, long enough that the moon begins to rise over the water.
“Hey, Nat?”
“Yeah?”
“Despite how it might seem, I’m actually your slave. You know that, don’t you? I’m completely and utterly at your mercy.”
“And I’m at yours.”
“You can’t ever leave me.”
I love when he, who could have any woman he wants, shows me his heart and his vulnerability where I’m concerned. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be than right here with you.”
Chapter 20
By Thursday night, we’ve tried everything twice and much of it three times because we liked it so much. My body is vibrating from the hours he spent building me up only to shatter me into a thousand pieces and then put me back together the way only he can.
It has been the most blissfully relaxing and sensually charged week of my life. That I’ve been able to relax so completely despite the nearly constant hum of desire is amazing to me. I’m sad that we have to go home tomorrow, but I’m ready to get back to some sort of productive routine after the beautiful weeks I’ve spent with Flynn.
I also miss Fluff. This is the longest we’ve ever been apart, and I hope she’s behaving for Flynn’s parents. Other than my weekly appointment with my therapist, Curt, which Flynn insisted I keep, we haven’t spoken to anyone but each other in days.
My body feels beautifully used, my most tender areas tingling from the burn of his big cock entering me over and over. I’m officially addicted to that big cock and all the amazing ways he uses it to love me. We’re lying in bed, our bodies cooling from another round of vigorous lovemaking, when the house phone rings, startling us both.
“Probably just the pilots confirming departure,” he says as he gets up to answer it. “I’ll tell them we’re not ready to go.”
“We are ready. We’ve got the Oscars this weekend, and we’re going. My husband is favored to win.”
He growls and makes a playfully sinister face at me. “I can’t believe you said that out loud.”
Smiling, I watch him leave the room. The sight of his tight buns never gets old, even after nearly a week of looking at his naked form.
Listening to the low hum of his voice in the other room, I begin to doze. I’m as relaxed as I’ve ever been after the idyllic time with him. We’ve done nothing but swim, lie in the sun, eat delicious food, drink margaritas and more wine from the Quantum vineyards and make love as often as we possibly could. Every part of me—and every part of him—is tanned from the hours in the sun. We’ve spent entire days in bed, talked about every possible topic and made more plans for our foundation. While I wish our time here could last forever, Flynn assures me we can come back again soon. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to digging into my new role with the foundation and making a difference for hungry children.
I wake with a start when his arm wraps around me from behind. How long was I asleep? How long was he gone?
“Everything okay?”
“That was Emmett.”
Three little words put me immediately on alert. I turn to face him. “What’s wrong?”
“They’ve made an arrest in the Rogers case.”
“That’s great news! Oh my God, what a relief. Now they’ll leave us alone.”
“Nat…”
“What? Who did they arrest?”
“Your father.”
I hate having to tell her this news. I have no idea how she’ll take it or what it even means for her or us.
She sits up in bed, tucking the covers around her breasts. It’s the first time she’s felt the need to cover herself all week. “My father. He killed David Rogers? But why? He didn’t even know him.”
“Emmett didn’t have the details yet, and of course Vickers isn’t taking his calls now that I’m no longer a suspect.”
“I… I don’t understand.”
Her confusion and disbelief make me furious. She was so relaxed and free of worries. And now this. I put my arms around her. “You haven’t seen your father in a long time. Perhaps he had some dealings with Rogers in the ensuing years. You never know.”
“I suppose. But why would he kill him now after he goes public with information about me?”
“Emmett said our investigator was actually the one to tip off the FBI to your father’s possible involvement. He said they didn’t want to bother us while we were here, so they held off on telling us until he’d been arrested. Apparently, the investigator caught the scent of your father because he decided to look into everyone who was involved in the Stone case from the beginning.”
“I need to call Candace and Olivia. I need to tell them…”
“Okay, sweetheart. I’ll get your phone.” I get up to retrieve the phone that’s been stashed in her purse all week. On the way back to the bedroom, I turn it on for her. The phone goes crazy beeping with text messages and voice mails. “It’s probably safe to say they already know.” I hand it over to her.
She begins to return the text messages from her sisters.
“What’re they saying?”
“They’re in shock and hiding from reporters.”
“I’ll set up some security for them.” I use my phone to send a message to Gordon Yates, our director of security in LA, asking him to work with Addie to arrange for immediate security for Natalie’s sisters.
I’m already on it, Gordon replies right away. I share that news with Natalie.
“Thank you. I hate to think of them being pursued by reporters and their lives upended again because of t
his.”
“What about your life, sweetheart?”
“My life is just fine, and it will continue to be fine. This has nothing to do with me.”
“Nat…”
“What? It doesn’t.”
“Is it possible your dad did this because he wants to make things right with you and he saw killing Rogers as a way to do that?”
She shakes her head, and I can see the disbelief has been replaced by anger. “It’s not about me. He did it because Rogers resurrected all the shit about Oren. In his mind, he was protecting Oren by killing Rogers. It’s always about Oren with him, even now.”
“You don’t know that for sure.”
“Yes, I do. And the only thing that matters to me is that the FBI is no longer looking at you for his murder.”
“Emmett said the press is driving Liza crazy wanting a statement from us about the arrest.”
“You could have her say that Natalie hasn’t seen or spoken to her father in more than eight years. His actions have no reflection on her or her sisters, who are also not in contact with Martin Genovese, and we ask that you respect her privacy and that of her family.”
“You’re sure that’s what you want?”
“Absolutely.”
I’m awake all night thinking about things I’d much rather forget. My father killed David. With hindsight, it makes a sick sort of sense. He must’ve been enraged to have the sordid tale resurrected after David went public with my story. Seeing Oren’s name once again dragged through the mud and every sick detail of what he’d done to me rebroadcast to a whole new audience probably sent my father into a rage. The audience was much larger this time around thanks to my relationship with Flynn and the insatiable appetite of the Hollywood media machine.
Despite my horror over what my father did, I’m sick with relief to know the spotlight is off Flynn.
“I can feel you spinning, sweetheart,” he mutters.
I thought he was asleep.
“Talk to me.”
“Nothing much to say.”
“What’re you thinking about?”
