by Jamie Knight
“Ready?” he asked.
I gave him a brilliant if somewhat fake smile. “As I’ll ever be.”
We stopped in front of the house and needing some reassurance, I gripped his hand.
“I promise you’ll be fine, pet.”
“This is billionaire-land. Everyone will take one glance at me and know I don’t come from money.” That and your cover-model-looking ex will be there. Thanks for keeping that a secret.
“Believe me, money doesn’t make a person. The world you’re about to enter is all smoke and mirrors.”
“If you say so.”
“I do.” He framed my face with his palms. “If it gets too much for you, we’ll leave.”
I nodded. The driver opened the door, took my hand and helped me out. A second later, James stood by my side.
He took my hand in his, and he guided me up the stone steps. As annoyed as I was with him, I relaxed into his touch, secure and safe at his closeness.
Inside, the noise was deafening a band played a Christmas song I didn’t recognize. If it were possible, the scent of money hung in the air along with the silver and blue decorations. Everything about this place and the people screamed wealth and entitlement.
I nudged James’s side. “Where are the orgies and whippings taking place?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “I wish. That’s Saturday night. Unfortunately, tonight is all about networking and business.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Everyone stared at me, and I didn’t miss the whispers. A smile stretched my lips, and my jaw ached from forcing happiness. I felt like a total fraud. I looked all around for Lyla, but thankfully there was no sign of her.
“Drink?” he asked.
“That would be hell, yes. Make it strong and make it a double. A triple.”
James disappeared to the bar leaving me standing alone. There was still no sign of his dreaded ex. Perhaps he wouldn’t show. No one came to talk to me, but I didn’t try to talk to anyone either. I didn’t know what to speak to them about anyway. They were hardly Hallmark watching, cookie baking, BDSM trying kind of people.
I wandered to the window and gazed at the falling snow that melted on contact with the ground. It was almost like a heat forcefield shielded the house.
“This is where you’re hiding, huh?” I turned at the sound of James’s voice. He handed me what looked like a bourbon on the rocks.
“Not hiding. More like blending in.”
“Pet,” he whispered, “You’re too beautiful to blend in. You were hiding.”
“Maybe I was.” I lowered my eyes and took a sip of my drink, loving how it warmed my insides. “This place is a total Christmas wonderland, apart from the no snow. It’s classy and exquisite.”
“Not as exquisite or as wonderful as you.”
“You can save the cheese. Can I tell you a secret?”
“You can tell me anything, pet.”
“You’re probably going to get lucky tonight without any effort.”
“I already am lucky. I meant it when I said I was the luckiest man at the party.”
My hands trembled at the level of earnestness in his words, and I hoped I wouldn’t spill my drink over my dress. The silky material would show every mark.
“Dance with me, pet.” He took my glass and set it down on a high-topped table. The band played Peace on Earth as James led me to a sunroom away from everyone else.
“Why not the ballroom?” I asked.
“I don’t want to share you.” He curled his arm around my waist, and we swayed in time to the music. Our bodies pressed against one another. My breasts against his chest, his erection against my mound.
I giggled. “You seem happy to be here.”
“With you in my arms, I am,” he said. “And you should wear heels more often. We line up perfectly.” The hand he’d placed on my lower back stroked up and down. His touch was erotic and intimate.
“This is lovely,” I said with a sigh.
“Are you having fun?”
“In your arms, I am.”
A flurry of excitement in the main room caught my attention. The woman I’d dreaded seeing strutted in like she owned the place.
“Lyla’s here.” I buried my head in his chest.
“I can see that.” His entire body tensed.
“Don’t hide from her. She smells weakness.”
“I’m a minion, and if she recognizes me from the office, she’ll cut me down to size.” I guided him from the sunroom, and we disappeared into the throng. After a while, he said, “Will you be okay while I go to the bathroom?”
“You can find me cowering behind the Christmas tree,” I said, half-joking, half not.
I wandered to the ceiling-height spruce, not hiding but admiring the decorations. Many looked like heirlooms that were as old as the house. I wasn’t alone for long. Lyla seized her opportunity and sidled up to me. “Aren’t you the girl who works for James?”
I steeled my back. “I work in the same law firm as him.”
“What’s your name again? I lose track. Pauline? Patricia?”
A smile strained my lips. “It’s Pearl.”
“You’re not his usual type.” Her voice was as frosty as the air outside.
“What’s his usual type?” I asked, gritting my teeth.
Her eyes flicked me up and down. “Not you. I know his mother. She wouldn’t like you. She’d see you for what you really are.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Lyla,” James said from behind. Relief whooshed over me. Although I didn’t need rescuing, I would thank him in the best way I knew how later. “I suggest you keep your unwanted opinions to yourself.”
“James, darling, you would think with the business you’re in, you would know better than to get involved with a social climber. Divorces are costly affairs.”
James curled a hand around my forearm. “Excuse us. I see someone else I’d like to talk to.”
“You’ll never find anyone like me again, James.”
I glared in her direction. Screw her and screw her insults. “I think you’ll find that’s the point.”
James snickered.
Lyla’s over made-up eyes flashed with offense. “We’ll see.”
She strutted away in a cloud of cloying perfume. “What a bitch.” Never mind about me not being his type. Lyla was one thousand percent, not his type.
“Nice comeback,” James complimented.
“I should have said more. I don’t know why I was worried. I can’t believe you dated someone as nasty as her. She doesn’t seem like a submissive.”
“She’s not. She thought she could play the part and thought I wouldn’t realize, but it didn’t work out that way. We all make mistakes, and she was one of mine. I’ve never regretted anything more.”
I hoped he wouldn’t one day say the same thing about me.
Chapter Twelve - James
I wanted my firecracker naked. I wanted her alone. I desired her so badly it hurt. For the past few days, I hadn’t been able to focus on work because of her. I’d barely been able to sleep because of her.
Selfishly I’d brought her to this party thinking if I had her by my side, people would leave me in peace. But they hadn’t. Us being together caused a stir and a few too many curious glances. Most of the woman had daggers in their eyes. Lyla had a sword in hers. I didn’t doubt Pearl could hold her own with these people, but I’d networked and schmoozed enough for one night, and it was time to go somewhere else.
“Let’s go outside. Get some air.”
Her eyes darted all around. “Good idea. It’s too stuffy in here.”
I took her hand and led her through the patio doors. The crisp winter air chilled my lungs and nipped at my skin.
“Want to walk around the grounds?” I asked.
“In these heels?”
“Take them off.”
“My feet will fre
eze.”
“The walkways are heated from beneath.”
“I guess that explains why there’s no snow on the path, but what about the grass?”
“In the winter, they have fake grass laid.”
“People with money sound like idiots.”
“Some are.” I curled an arm around her waist and brought her closer.
“Where are we going to go?”
“Somewhere we can be alone for a while.”
Unable to wait any longer, I pulled her into me and kissed her softly. I touched my tongue off hers, and the way she tasted sent my senses spiraling. I didn’t want to let her go—ever. Pulling her closer still, I moaned, my dick filling and hardening. I broke away and studied her beauty.
“Thank you for coming here with me, pet. I know it wasn’t easy. I should’ve told you about Lyla sooner.”
She playfully pushed me away. “Yeah, you should have.”
“I promise the next party we go to will be more fun than this.”
“Will any of your ex-girlfriends be there?” she asked.
I laughed. “No ex-girlfriends.”
“Good.”
“Promise I’ll make it up to you.” I glanced up at the sky. “What have you done to me? You touch me in a way I can’t explain. You’re special, Pearl. I hadn’t expected this to happen.”
“Me either.”
“Yet here we are.”
“Yet here we are,” she echoed.
I kissed her again, and she groaned deeply.
“Take me, James.” She draped her arms around my neck and buried her fingers in my hair. “I don’t care where and I don’t care how.”
I tightened my arms around her pressing my palms into the curve of her lower back. Common sense told me this was a mistake. That a relationship with her was the last thing I needed. Things between us could get complicated, but I was powerless to walk away. She was the most intoxicating woman I’d ever met, and the most responsive I’d ever been with.
“I don’t know if I can let you go after this month is over.” I brushed my lips back and forth over hers.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“I’m not sure.”
She reared back, and her brows lifted. “Thanks.”
“I’m being truthful. I take, and I take, and I take. I don’t know if I’m good for you.”
“You also give so much. I’m not a naïve little girl. I know how this works. This isn’t about love or forever. It’s about mutual satisfaction.”
To hear her talk so coldly stopped my heart for a second. I’d wanted her to say she couldn’t live without me. That she longed to be with me every second of every day. But if she said that, how would I feel? Would I shut her out of my life?
“Let’s not spoil tonight by talking about emotions. Let’s focus on having fun.”
Who was submissive, and who was dominant?
“Apart from Lyla, I’ve had a fantastic time. I promise. It’s not a bad thing to step out of your comfort zone once in a while.”
“The night’s not over yet.”
“I like the way you think.” She shivered from head to toe.
“Cold?”
“A little. But I’m sure you can think of a way to keep me warm.”
“I can think of several things.” I took off my jacket and draped it around her bare shoulders. We roamed grounds mostly in comfortable silence and stopped outside the place I’d been looking for. The greenhouse would put the New York Botanical Gardens to shame.
She glanced up in wonder. “This is like a glass mansion.”
I opened the door. Dim lights and earthy, humid air greeted us when we went inside.
“Wow.” Pearl turned around slowly. “Did I fall down the rabbit hole? I feel like Alice in Wonderland.”
We wandered through the aisles, silently admiring the out of season flowers and plants.
“It’s beautiful in here.”
“It is, but it’s hot, and we’re wearing too many clothes.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her to a halt.
Her eyes darted around. “Are you sure no one will come in?”
“The only person who comes in here is the gardener, and he doesn’t work nights.”
I kept hold of her hands and walked her backward.
She took a deep breath and then another. “What would you have me do, sir?”
“Since we’re not doing a scene, you can call me James. Tonight, it’s just James and Pearl.”
“Okay, James.”
I kissed her, and there was nothing slow about it. No hiding how much we wanted one another. I stroked my fingertips up and down her arms and sucked her lips, my tongue darting inside her mouth.
Blood roared through my ears, and to steady myself, I took a lung-filling breath. I tunneled my fingers through her hair and brushed them down her back. Moving my hand down to her ass, I grabbed her and pulled her flush against my aching cock. “Mine.”
“Yours,” she whispered.
I lifted my head and stepped away, yanked off my bow tie, and opened my shirt. When I kicked off my shoes and pulled off my pants, she moaned softly. Hearing her react the way she did, turned me on even more. She inhaled sharply, and I grinned.
“Your dress has to come off, but I want you to keep your shoes on.” I moved to her side and slowly, oh so slowly, unzipped her dress. It fell to the floor, and my gaze followed.
“Everything about you is perfect. Magnificent.” Before devouring her, I moved to the front of her body and paused for a few seconds to drink in the sight of her long, long legs in the black heels, the swell of her hips, the dip of her waist, and her magnificent, lust-swollen tits. She wore a skimpy, black thong. I ripped it off and threw it over my shoulder. She was now naked.
A seductive and sensual smile curved her lips, making my mouth water and my dick swell.
“Walk for me.”
She gave me a confused look. “Walk?”
“Walk.”
Now seeming bemused, she strutted slowly with an enticing swing of her hips, her round ass jiggling up and down with every step. The heels of her shoes clicked and clacked, the sound reverberating around the greenhouse.
Damn.
Damn.
I’d never ached for a woman the way I ached for Pearl.
She giggled as she walked back, her breasts swaying from side to side. When she made it to me, I reached out and caressed each one.
Hunger hurtled through my veins. I briefly closed my eyes and groaned.
“James? Is everything okay?”
“Never better,” I said and opened my eyes.
I maneuvered her until she sat on the edge of a table. Her heat-filled gaze streamed over me.
I then fell onto my knees, spread her legs, and licked the slick skin of her inner thighs until her breath hitched and her thighs tightened around my head.
So. Damn. Wet.
No more waiting.
No more wanting.
Chapter Thirteen - Pearl
I clung to the edge of the table and threw my head back. James licked and sucked my inner thighs, making me sway with dizziness. Every now and again, he would move his thumb to the one spot that always sent me tumbling. This was better than any fantasy I’d ever had.
He kissed one side of my thigh then the other before gently opening me up. The man knew how to drive me insane. He ran his tongue up one side and then the other. I half moaned, and half whimpered.
He pressed the flat of his tongue against my clit.
Oh, my God.
He stopped pleasuring me, and I groaned in frustration. He wasn’t playing fair. I was so desperate I was close to pushing him to the ground and sitting on his face. “Please don’t stop. Don’t ever stop.”
The tip of his tongue twirled around my swollen bud, sending me higher with every rotation. I dug my fingers into his scalp, not caring if I hurt him.
He laughed and stretched me tight.
Stroke after stroke. Lick after lick.
The circles became slow and concentrated. Time slowed. He sucked my clit into his mouth and tapped his tongue against the tip. Time stopped. And then I was gone, gone, gone. My whole body convulsed, my cries reverberating around the greenhouse. I didn’t care how loud I was, and I didn’t care if anyone heard.
Nothing else existed in the world except my climax. My thighs tensed and imprisoned his head. James continued to lick and suck, and I squirmed and thrashed against his face.
My sensitized clit couldn’t withstand anymore. I pushed his head away. Grinning, he leaned back and kissed his way up my body.
“Fuck me. Take me, James.”
“With pleasure.” He placed his hands on my knees and spread me wide.
His eyes flamed. “I want you to come on my cock. Hard. I want to hear you cry. I want to hear you scream.”
He continued kissing me. Devouring me. With zero build-up, he reached between my legs, teasing my slippery and still sensitive clit. I spread my legs further, granting him access. He curled his hand around his cock and thrust in. Both of us groaned at the same time.
I hissed out a breath. His width and his length felt glorious inside me. I closed my eyes and pressed my forehead against his as he edged deeper. I clenched around him and drew him in, needing every inch.
“God, Pearl.”
He kissed and licked my lips while plunging in and out of my channel. I was his. I belonged to him.
His fingers explored every inch of my skin they could reach. I needed him to become an uncaring animal. A beast.
“Pearl,” he bit out. He reared back and pounded hard, pummeling my pussy.
The echo of his climax against the glass and was so loud I expected the ceiling to shatter. My second orgasm claimed me, and I dug my fingers into his back, calling, screaming his name.
James thrust a few more times, giving me every drop of his cum before easing from my depths.
“That…” I gasped.
He grinned and shook his head. “I know.”
I stroked my fingers along his shoulders. “We should probably go back. People will begin to talk.”
