by Rose Nickol
“What is the message?”
The man held out a picture of her son sitting with an older lady. Cliff appeared happy.
Nicole was holding her phone and hit the record button. She tried to hold the phone casually, but still in a way that would record the man’s face as well as his words.
Nicole took the picture. “Thank you?”
“Huang wanted you to see that your son is safe and happy. He feels once you know this, that you will be content to leave the boy where he is happiest with his family. He has cousins, siblings, aunts, and uncles all who love him and can give him more than you can. If you stop this nonsense of trying to get him back Huang will continue to let you communicate with the boy. If you do not, other methods will be employed to persuade you.”
He then moved past Nicole and let himself out.
Nicole stumbled over to the sofa and dropped to a sitting position. What did she do now? Should she call the police? What should she do?
She stopped the recording on her phone and noticed the small white card on the floor where she had dropped it. Paul. She’d call Paul and let him know what had happened. He would know what to do.
Nicole hung up the phone after explaining to Paul what had occured. It had only been a short time since she’d left Trident and he was still close by. He told her he’d be there as quickly as he could. She sat on the couch to wait, her head resting in her hands. She’d never expected Huang to threaten her and wondered if Jin knew what his father was up to.
She wasn’t sure how much time had passed before she heard a knock at the door. It was Paul and the guy who had used the computer at the meeting. They also had a Tampa police officer with them.
“Nicole, I’m sure you remember Monty Hardgrove, and this is officer Wilson Meeker of the Tampa police department. He’s going to take the report on the break-in. A team will be here shortly to check for evidence.”
Nicole sat on the couch while the men stood in her small living room. She offered them seats, but they all refused.
She explained how she’d gotten home and found the man, then played the recording for them. They asked several questions, then Paul went to check to see if he could determine how the man had gotten in.
Monty took her phone and sent the short film clip to his own email and also to the cybercrimes department of the police department for further analysis.
“I think I found the point of entry,” Paul called from her bedroom. “Do you remember if this window was open or closed?” he asked pointing to a small window next to her bed.
Nicole moved over to it and reached for the sill. “Don’t touch it,” Paul said stopping her and moving her back.
“I’m sure it was closed and locked,” she said moving her hands behind her back and leaning up to peer at the lock.
It was broken. “Was it like this before?” Paul pointed to the broken pieces.
“I honestly don’t know. It’s been too warm to open the windows and I don’t remember whether it was broken before or not.” Nicole tried to think if the lock had been like that before or not.
“Don’t worry about it. It really doesn’t matter. I’ll make sure it’s fixed. I’m going to check the other windows. I’m pretty sure this was where he gained access though.” Paul started for the only other room with windows in the apartment.
“But I’m on the second floor? I thought I’d be safer here.” Nicole leaned towards the window again.
Paul stepped up behind her, so close they were almost touching. “See the scrollwork on the balconies. It would be very easy for someone to climb up those. Then hoist themselves up over the rail and step onto the balcony. A short jump to this ledge and he’s in.”
Nicole followed him to the kitchen. They could both tell immediately that this was not the point of access. Nicole had several plants on her windowsill, and it was obvious that none of them had been disturbed.
Nicole moved back into her bedroom where Officer Meeker was just finishing taking pictures. He nodded to her and moved out of the room. Nicole stood staring at the window.
That meant he had to have gotten in through the bedroom. A shiver ran through Nicole’s body. What if she had been home and sleeping? She could feel the panic starting.
“Not now,” she told her body. “No, please not now.” She dropped down on the bed and leant forward, her head drooping into her hands. The little shivers that had been coursing through her now became tremors, and she could feel the sweat beginning to form on her brow.
She hadn’t realized that Paul had followed her until she heard his voice.
“Are you okay?” Paul asked, dropping down beside her and putting one arm around her.
Nicole couldn’t answer, all she could do was shake her head. Paul grabbed the blanket off the foot of the bed and wrapped it around her. He pulled her head up until he could gaze into her eyes.
“Nicole,” he said her name firmly. “I think you’re having a panic attack. I want you to watch me and breathe with me. Can you do that?”
She didn’t respond at first. “Nicole!” This time he threw a bit of his Dom voice into it. Many a sub had dropped to her knees with just a glance from him.
When Nicole nodded, Paul smiled. “In. One, two, three.” He continued to a count of ten. Then he watched as she pulled in a shaky breath and held it. “Now out.” He counted to ten again. Nicole let the breath out. “Again.” Paul repeated the breaths in and out several times, watching Nicole closely as he did.
“Do we need EMS?” Monty asked from the doorway, his voice soft so as not to distract Nicole.
“No. It’s a panic attack. I’ll talk her down.” Paul didn’t take his eyes off Nicole while he was speaking. He held the blanket around her and continued the in and out breathing and counting until she was able to nod.
“I’m better n-now,” she said, her voice shaky and tremors still wracking her body.
Paul turned to Monty. “Maybe a cup of hot tea. Pour a good shot of rum or whiskey in it.”
Monty nodded and headed off to the kitchen to see what he could find.
“No b-booze in the h-house,” Nicole said, her voice stuttering.
“We’ll have to fix that,” Paul said with a laugh.
Nicole laughed and pulled the blanket closer. “I think that might be a good idea. I’m sorry. I haven’t had a panic attack in a long time.”
“With everything that’s happened today, I’m not surprised. Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?” Paul was still sitting on the bed. He laid one of his hands over hers where she was still clutching the blanket.
“I can stay here. Do you think I shouldn’t?” Nicole’s eyes grew wide and her breathing was speeding up again.
“Easy. Easy. Breathe. Breathe. I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be here by yourself until you get your window fixed. I’m not sure how the management is here at the complex, but they may not be able to fix your window today.” Paul still had his gaze locked on hers.
“Oh. I didn’t think of that,” Nicole stared down at her lap. His gaze was so intense.
“Here.” Monty came into the room with a steaming mug. “I couldn’t find anything stronger than tea, so I dumped a bunch of sugar into it.”
Nicole took the cup with a frown.
“What?” Paul asked, when he saw the grimace on her face.
“I hate sweet tea,” she said with a face.
“It will be good for you. Pretend it’s whiskey.” Paul lifted her hands holding the cup to her lips.
“Just a few sips for me. It will help stabilize your blood sugar. When you have these attacks, it can lower your blood sugar.”
“I know that. I am a nurse.”
Paul nodded and tapped at the cup.
Nicole took a sip and although it was sweet it did taste good.
“Again.” Paul tapped the bottom of the cup lifting it towards her lips.
Monty appeared in the doorway. “Everything good in here?”
“Yeah. Everything’s under c
ontrol,” Paul answered.
“Officer Meeker and I are heading out then. Meeker said he’d file the report and get a copy to us but didn’t think much would happen. I’m going to pull all the cameras around here and see if I can find out who the man may have been based on Nicole’s description and the picture she got on her phone. I’m also going to see if Egghead will let me use his facial recognition software. His program is better than mine.”
“Good idea. I’ll have my phone on if you need me. I’m going to stick around here for a while until the scene is secured or we come up with another plan.”
“Later.” Monty turned and moved out of the room.
“Now. About your plans for the evening?” Paul went back to Nicole.
4
Paul refused to let Nicole stay alone in her apartment and she refused to leave. When he realized she wasn’t going to budge without him throwing her over his shoulder caveman-style and carrying her off, he decided he would stay.
“You don’t need to do that. Huang sent his message. They won’t be back tonight,” Nicole argued, when Paul insisted she would not stay alone until the window was secure. “This really isn’t necessary,” Nicole continued to argue.
“And I say it is. Since I’m the security expert and you’re the client, I win.”
“But…” Nicole tried one more time.
“Nope, not having it. All you need to decide is where we’re ordering dinner from. Other than that, we’re done.”
Nicole knew continuing to argue wouldn’t get her any further, so she found her stash of take-out menus and laid the selection out on her coffee table. “What would you like?” she asked, trying not to be too snarky.
Paul smiled at her tone of voice. Too bad she wasn’t his. She’d have been over his knee and he’d have reddened that ass so fast.
She had the perfect ass for spanking. Round with just the right amount of bounce. He couldn’t stand a stick-figure woman. He liked them with a little meat on their bones. What most women considered ‘fat’ he thought was perfect.
He was a big man and liked lush, something to hold on to. A nice breast to cushion his head, round hips to hold on to while he was fucking them. A little jiggle when they walked.
He needed to curb his thoughts, or he was going to have a problem on his hands he wouldn’t be able to do anything about. Her couch was nice, but it was short, and he could tell sleeping on it was not going to be as comfortable as the king-sized bed waiting in his hotel room would be. And sleeping anywhere with a hard-on was not his goal for the evening.
He’d slept in worse places though. While he was in the service, he’d spent more nights in a hole in the sand than he’d ever care to admit. He’d cope.
After dinner, Nicole again tried again to convince him that she would be okay. “I’ll sleep with my phone. I’ll program your number in it and call you the minute anything happens.”
“Not happening. My hotel is twenty minutes away. Twenty minutes too far if you’re in trouble. Even the police would take several minutes to get here. Do you know what could happen in that time? Do I need to tell you what could happen?” Paul sat calmly on the couch while Nicole paced the floor trying to convince him she’d be okay.
“You are so frustrating,” she finally said, plopping down on the couch beside him and crossing her arms over her chest under her breasts.
The action pushed her breasts up, deepening the cleavage on her V-neck t-shirt.
“You have no idea,” Paul replied with a chuckle.
He slid one arm along the back of the couch and cupped the shoulder farthest from him. “Relax and watch the movie. You’ve missed half of it. My only concern is your safety.”
“Don’t you need to go to the hotel and get a change of clothes or something?”
“Nope. Go bag in my truck.”
“Go bag?”
“I learned long ago to keep a change of clothes with me at all times. The army teaches you lots of things.” Paul was starting to have fun with her.
“You should check in with your boss…”
“Cell phone.”
“Your contacts?”
“Again, cell phone.” The grin on Paul’s face was getting broader.
“Look, sweetheart, no matter what excuse you come up with, I’m going to have an answer to it. Nothing’s going to happen here tonight. Watch the movie.”
Nicole nodded with a “hrmph,” and turned her eyes to the television.
“How did the army teach you to keep a change of clothes all the time?”
“My first lesson was when I was in Afghanistan. We were camping out and had all our gear and spare clothes at camp. We were sent out on a mission. When we got back everything was gone. All we had was the clothes on our backs for over a week until we could get supplies dropped. Living in the same clothes in the desert for that long wasn’t terrible, as long as you were downwind, but boy were we glad when they were able to drop supplies. We all learned that day to always keep a spare set of fatigues with us, along with a few other things.”
“I can imagine.” Nicole let herself lean back for a few minutes. Suddenly she sat forward and started to get up.
“Where are you going now?” Paul reached out a hand to pull her back down.
“Do you want something to drink or some popcorn? Maybe a snack?”
“Nicole. Settle. We’re going to finish the movie, then you’ll go to bed and I’ll sleep out here. Everything will be fine.” He reached down and pulled one of her feet into his lap.
“What are you doing?” Nicole said, jerking at her foot.
“Relaxing you. I don’t do this for just anybody, so enjoy it.” Paul had pulled her sandal off and was rubbing the bottom of her feet.
It only took a few minutes before Nicole’s eyes were drifting shut. “That feels so good,” she murmured sleepily. “Where’d you learn?”
Her voice had taken on a husky quality that shot straight to Paul’s cock. He was beginning to wonder if this had been the smartest idea.
He continued watching the movie and kept rubbing Nicole’s feet, pulling the other one into his lap when he’d finished with the first.
By the time he’d hit all the pressure points she was softly snoring. He continued to sit while the movie finished, then contemplated what to do. He wanted to carry her into her bedroom and lie down with her, but it was too soon for that. She didn’t know him well enough and even though there was an attraction there, they needed to spend more time together.
Paul gently moved off the couch, pulling Nicole down by her feet until her head was resting on the arm of the couch. A little exploring and he’d found her stash of extra blankets and a pillow. He unfolded one blanket to cover her with, then used the pillow and remaining blankets to make a pallet for himself. He slid her coffee table out of the way and lay on the floor beside the couch. If she got too restless, she would fall on him, not on the floor.
After he’d double-checked the windows and door, he shut all the lights off and lay down to catch a few hours himself. He knew the men that were sitting in the parking lot would notify him if anything suspicious occurred. He could safely sleep for a few hours.
They’d put a piece of wood in her window so it couldn’t be opened. Tomorrow he’d make sure the lock was repaired, even if he had to do it himself.
He had also texted Neptune about a security system for her. He’d pay for it out of his pocket if she balked. He closed his eyes and let his mind drift.
He slowly stripped off her clothes, starting with the oversized shirt she wore. If she were his, he would throw the loose clothing she seemed to like away and keep her in formfitting items. He liked her curves and wanted to be able to see them. He liked knowing others wanted what he had but could never touch. He always had been very possessive of his toys.
Once he had her naked, he would cup her abundant breasts with his huge hands. Even though his hands were large she would more than fill them. He could hear the breath escape her lips as he passed his t
humbs back and forth over her nipples. Would they be the same pale pink of her lips or would they be darker like the red of a ripe raspberry?
As his thumbs moved over her nipples, he would squeeze her breasts, mauling the soft flesh with his hands, not cruelly, adding just enough pain to amplify her awareness, watching as the soft mounds flowed and overfilled his hands.
When her nipples were hard, and her soft breaths had turned to a mewling sound, he would pull a pair of tweezer clamps out of his pocket and apply them just tight enough to bring her up on her toes.
He’d kiss those lips until she melted against him. When she began the dance, first shifting her weight trying to move her legs together to relieve the ache he was causing there, he would attach a spreader bar to each leg leaving them wide apart and unable to give herself the friction her body craved.
He’d pick up her petite body and lay it on the nearest flat surface, standing over her and catching his first glance of her exposed sex. Would her cunt be the same color as her now reddened nipples? Would it weep for him and the release he could give her?
Would she beg for him? Now her soft mewling would change to low moans. Would she chant his name? He could hear her panting, smell her essence. He’d kiss her mouth exerting his dominance in the kiss, leaving her lips swollen and bruised, her breath labored, her body begging for the release only he could give.
He’d take his softest deerskin flogger and redden her tits, her stomach and finally her cunt. She’d beg for her release as he kept her on edge for hours, always bringing her to the brink before backing off only to ramp her up again.
When her body was sweat covered and trembling, he’d crawl on top of her and slam into her tight sheath.
His hand moved to cup his hardening cock through his jeans, wishing he’d gone out to his truck and retrieved the sweatpants he had there. He glanced up to the couch where she lay sleeping.
Convinced that she was unaware of him, he unfastened the snap and lowered his zipper, freeing his hardened shaft. He briefly thought about going to her restroom to take care of his problem, but wanted to be where he could see her as he fisted his cock, moving up and down, giving himself the relief he knew he would get no other way.
