by Goode, Ella
“Thought you weren’t supposed to touch,” she whispers.
“Not going to touch. Gonna smell.”
Her eyes flare, and her panties grow darker. My fucking Lord. I could come just looking at her.
Chapter 6
Cora
My feet move on their own, my body knowing what it wants. My head is still trying to play catch up with all the things I’m feeling right now. Trying to figure out if I should be feeling them at all. This isn't how this is supposed to go. I’m the one that should be seducing him, not the other way around. Yet my body hums with anticipation at what Aidon will do next.
I watch as he leans back in the chair, looking almost casual. As though he’s getting ready to talk about some business deal. Not that I really know much about what he does except be feared by everyone. That shouldn't turn me on either but deep down it does.
“Take the panties off,” he orders. I look down at myself and see the wet spot that is unmissable. Heat rushes to my face. I might be used to being naked, but I’m not used to being so turned on. Or anyone seeing the evidence of it.
Sure, I’ve been turned on before from erotic scenes I’ve read in the pages of a book. But it was never like this. My whole body throbs with a need I don’t understand. I thought only men lost their minds over sex. That only goes to show you how little I actually know about the subject.
“Tick tock,” he reminds me. I try to pull my panties off while holding up my skirt at the same time. I lose my balance, letting out a small scream as I start to fall over. Aidon reaches out and in one quick move catches me before I can hit the floor.
He pulls me into his lap so that I’m straddling him. I don’t think falling over as you try to undress falls into the seductress category. When my eyes meet Aidon’s dark gaze, I see the lust there. His nose flares as he slowly releases his hold on me. He drops his arms, his hands gripping the edges of the chair as he leans back once again.
His motion causes his hips to rise and his hard cock to brush up against my sex. I let out a moan at the contact. It’s only seconds before I feel myself begin to rock back and forth on him, trying to get the friction I need.
“Panties off if you’re going to rub your cunt on me.” I scramble off his lap. He releases his hold on the chair, his hands coming up to grab my hips, but he stops when he realizes I’m doing as he told me. I pull the dress up over my head, tossing it to the floor before I go for my panties next. I might as well go all in if I’m going to do this. I want him to see all of me.
His hands go back to the legs of the chair. His grip is so tight on them I hear the wood creak loudly under his hold. A thrill runs through me that he’s having to fight to control himself. The laid-back demeanor he had earlier is long gone.
I lick my lips and step back toward him. He parts his legs giving me all the room I might need to get close to him. I put my hands on his shoulders to balance myself. There are no rules against me touching him. My nipples tighten more, and I feel myself grow wetter from the heated look in his eyes.
“What do I smell like?” I ask.
“What I would guess heaven smells like.” I lift my hand, running my finger down his jaw. He tilts his head only a fraction, leaning into my touch. How can he be so deadly at times but then have these hints of sweetness? This must be part of his plan. Maybe he’s trying to seduce me too? I’m just unsure how that would actually help him.
“I suppose then this will be the closest you’ll ever get to knowing.” I don’t think men like Aidon get to go to heaven. No, he’s the devil himself.
I lift my leg over his so that I can drop down onto his thigh. He closes his eyes for a long moment. I remember what Sasha told me. Less can be more when it comes to a man.
She said teasing them was the way you get them to do what you want. That you need to get them so worked up that they are out of their minds with need for you. That means not rubbing myself against his cock no matter how good it feels. It doesn't mean I can't rub myself on other parts of him. His thighs for example. I didn't know thighs could be sexy until he leaned back in the chair with his long legs stretched out, his dress pants hugging them.
“Then make it good, angel.” His thigh flexes, and I moan, shifting my hips to rub myself against him. “Make yourself come.” I spread my legs wider and roll my hips back and forth. Aidon lets out a groan as I start to move faster, the pleasure growing.
“Aidon.” I moan his name, wishing he could touch me. I want his mouth on me, his hands grabbing me. Instead I drop my face into his neck, breathing him in as I press my mouth there. His whole body jerks.
“I want to see you,” he growls out. It’s too late. I'm already coming. The orgasm hits me hard. I sink my teeth into his neck at the unexpected rush of pleasure unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. My hips keep rocking against him drawing out the pleasure until my whole body melts into him. My eyes fall closed as I release my teeth from his neck.
I bit him. I open my eyes and see the mark on his throat. He doesn't say anything, but his heavy breathing fills the room. Slowly I lift my head to look at him.
“Sorry,” I say, licking my lips.
“You will be.” What does that mean? Before I can ask, he stands, lifting me with him. He carries me over toward the bed, dropping me down quickly. My eyes go to his thigh, and I see the wet spot I left on his slacks. “I’m sending lunch up. Eat it.” He turns, heading back toward the elevator. Once again leaving me all alone
Chapter 7
Aidon
I make a quick change of my clothes before going down to my office. Kailler arches her eyebrows when I walk in but is smart enough not to say anything. Maybe she senses I’m in a piss poor mood and likely to bite off the head of anyone who looks at me cross-eyed. The minute I sit down, she approaches with the first report.
“Bran and Hunt came back with intel. Poppy’s credit card receipts show purchases of flowers, underwear, a luxury handbag, and a five-figure sum spent at this jewelry store.” Her finger points to a name that immediately invokes visions of pale blue boxes and white ribbons. I have to consciously resist the urge to pick up the phone and order something sparkly for the girl upstairs. She doesn’t need it, nor do I think she’d welcome it. I force myself to concentrate on Kailler’s summary.
“Do we have an ID of the recipient of these gifts?” He obviously had a woman and based on where he died, we’re all assuming it’s a Vieth orphan—which one is the question.
“Not yet.” Kailler frowns. “His apartment doesn’t have any signs of cohabitation. One toothbrush in the bathroom, no clothes other than his own. His fridge was mostly empty but for juice, some beer, and bottled water.”
“Poppy the type to drink bottled water?” I ask.
Kailler nods. “Yeah, he didn’t trust the tap water. Even brushed his teeth with filtered water so it’s not likely that was a sign of someone else in his place.”
“If he didn’t bring her to his place then he was staying at hers.”
“Right. Hunter is trying to hack into Poppy’s phone, and once he’s in, we can download his GPS history.”
There’s a knock on the door and then Bran peeks his square head inside the office. “Mallard is here.”
“Show him in.”
“Wait—” Pole appears. “Ashford wants to see you. Like ASAP.”
A frown crinkles my forehead. “Ashford? What the hell does he want?”
“Don’t know.” Pole shrugs.
Ashford runs drugs and guns in a territory to the west that runs parallel to mine. We’ve had skirmishes over the years but no actual deaths in the recent past. If there are fights, it generally stops with broken bones because death means war, and no one has wanted to take us in a battle since we avenged Jason’s death ten years ago. I haven’t had a real casualty, which is why Poppy’s death has us all on edge. We’ve enjoyed a measure of peace, and no one wants to go back to the days when it was more common for me to come to the office and see a body on the desk than a pie
ce of paper.
“Unless Poppy was seeing one of Ashford’s crew, there’s no reason for him to be here,” Kailler murmurs.
“And the likelihood of that?” It’s not like I keep track of the sex lives of my people. As long as it doesn’t interfere with their work or their loyalty to the family then they are free to do whatever the hell they want.
“Very low,” Kailler replies.
“All right. I’ll see Ashford first and then Mallard. Get Mallard some lunch and make sure you send a food cart up to the tower.”
“Should I question the girl about Ashford or Poppy?”
“No. I’ll do it later.”
Kailler looks disappointed. Her eyes drop to my neck where Cora bit me. She left a mark behind for anyone to see. I fight myself to not reach up and touch it right now. I’d gotten hard all over again when I saw it in the mirror while changing my clothes. I didn't want anyone to see the wet spot on my thigh. Not because I was embarrassed by it but because it was mine alone. I was the one who got her off. Every drop of her orgasm belonged to me and no one else.
Kailler’s probably concerned that I’m putting myself into danger again, and while I know I should stay away, I can’t. It would be easier to gouge my eyes out or cut off my arm than to stay away from Cora. Even if my second is unhappy, she doesn’t show it. Instead, she fetches Ashford, returning with the fifty-year-old man a minute later. Ashford was Jason’s contemporary. He likes to claim they grew up as petty thieves in the same gang, but Jason had always denied this. Either way, Ashford is a reminder that this business favors the young. People of a certain age either accumulate too much power, don’t know how to manage it, or gather weapons to protect that power that are eventually used against them.
“My boy,” Ashford proclaims as he enters the office. His arms are spread wide and welcoming. I make no move to budge from behind my desk, and eventually Ashford gets tired of waiting for a response. His hands fall to his side, and his smile is replaced by an indignant frown. “No welcome for me?” he chastises. “We’re not enemies.”
We aren’t friends either. “What do you want, Ashford? I’ve got a lot of things on my plate.”
“I know.” He rubs his hands together and takes a seat in front of me. “I hear you have Karin Vieth’s daughter locked up in your tower room, and I’m here to take her off your hands.” He raises a palm. “No need to thank me. I’m doing it to prevent a civil war between you and Vieth. Inevitably someone will die, and I don’t want that someone to be me caught in the crossfire.” How does he even know about Vieth’s daughter if she’s been kept a secret? Someone is out there spreading the word, it seems.
“If Vieth meant for you to have her daughter, she would have taken the girl to Lakewood.” Lakewood is Ashford’s estate north of the city.
Ashford laughs lightly. “This is true. I suspect Vieth does not trust me like she trusts you. But I don’t really give a fuck about all that. We have a perfect opportunity here.” He leans forward, inviting me to copy him. In a much lowered voice, he continues, “Give me the girl, and you will have fulfilled whatever bargain Vieth made with you. When she’s unsuspecting, we’ll smash the nests and root her out of here once and for all.”
“And then what?” Ashford never thinks ahead. It’s a miracle he’s still alive, but I guess it’s because he pays well.
“And then we rid ourselves of the scourge that is Karin Vieth and her girls. I don’t have to worry that every time my man gets his dick wet, he’s going to be spilling all our secrets out on the pillow. You have to feel the same way.”
I think of Poppy and the execution-type bullet hole in the middle of his forehead. I do not like that he’s dead and that he was killed by a Vieth orphan, but giving Cora to Ashford is never going to happen. Not while I’m still breathing.
Chapter 8
Cora
I lie on the bed bored out of my mind. That woman Kailler came and took the old food cart and left another. I prefer to call her killer in my mind because she looks so damn deadly when you look into her eyes. I tried to get her to talk to me, but it was like pulling teeth.
I don’t think she likes me. I’d gotten so excited when I saw it was her that was dropping off the food. I would have preferred Aidon, but I wasn't going to turn my nose up at another woman. I figured we could bond on some sort of level, but I’d been wrong. Not that I’m going to give up.
I shoot up to a sitting position when I hear the elevator. The doors slide open a few seconds later. Kailler steps out with a box in her hand. I slip off the side of the bed. She’s dressed in black slacks and a buttoned-up plain white shirt. Her hair is tied back in a tight ponytail. There is not a speck of makeup on her face. She is beautiful without trying.
“You’re back.” I smile at her. Her face remains unreadable. Yeah, she really doesn't like me. It shouldn't bug me, but it does. I think I’m so used to women being around that it’s odd to me that she’s so cold.
“I brought you this.” She holds out the small box, and I see it’s a Kindle.
“Oh my gosh! Thank you.” I rush toward her in my excitement, meaning to give her a hug. The next thing I know she flips me, and I land back onto the bed. Kailler’s mouth hangs open for a second.
“I didn't mean to do that. You rushed at me and….” Kailler starts to ramble like I’m going to attack her now.
“That was so bad ass.” I pop back up to sit. “Can you show me how to do it?” She gives me a puzzled look.
“You shouldn't run at people like that,” she informs me. It didn’t take her long to switch back to being cold.
“I was going to give you a hug as a thank you.”
“Sure. The next thing I know you would have stabbed me in the process to steal my keys to get out of here. This is not my first go with a Vieth orphan.”
“I don’t have anything to stab you with. Not that I would if I did.” To be honest, blood makes me squeamish. I am still trying to get past the dead body I saw yesterday and all the blood that was draining from it. Even now thinking about it, I start to feel a bit nauseous. I had a nightmare about it last night.
“I don’t need a hug.” I’m not so sure I agree with her. She looks as if she needs a ton of hugs. She tosses the Kindle box onto the bed next to me.
“Will you teach me?” I ask again as I slip back over to the bed again.
“No.”
“Please?” I push. She stares at me for a moment. She is thinking this through. A small glimmer of hope rises in me that I’m beginning to crack that hard exterior of hers.
“If you’re trying to convince everyone that you really are Karin's daughter you’re doing a terrible job of it.”
“I’m not trying to convince anyone. It’s the truth.” I shrug, not sure it really does matter if they believe me or not.
“Do you need more food?” She ignores my response. I shake my head no. I still haven’t eaten off the lunch cart they brought in. She turns to walk over and inspect it.
“You didn't eat. Do you think we are trying to poison you?” She picks up one of the little sandwiches and takes a bite. “It’s safe. You need to eat. Those are Aidon’s wishes, and you don’t want to suffer the consequences of not following them.”
I hadn't really thought about them trying to poison me. But I noticed it irritated Aidon when I hadn't eaten my breakfast. So I figured not eating was a good way to get him to come back around.
Kailler thinks she’s intimidating me with her subtle threats, but I’m trying to poke Aidon. I can’t seduce him if he’s not around to be seduced. I welcome the consequences as long as they are done by him.
“I’ll eat if you show me how you flipped me.”
“Fine.” She huffs. For the next thirty minutes she tries to teach me. Over and over I try to flip her but get nowhere.
“You have to use your body weight,” she repeats for the tenth time as we both put our hands back on each other's shoulders.
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
; She lets out a bark of laughter. “You’re not going to…”
I turn and pull her arms with me. My feet knock hers out from underneath her as I pull her over my shoulder and flip her. She lands on the rug. She stares up at me with surprise on her face before she bursts into laughter.
I can’t help but join her. This time she catches me off guard, sweeping my feet from under me and causing me to fall to the floor, which only makes me laugh harder. That’s until she realizes what she’s doing. She suddenly stops laughing and gets to her feet. I watch as the cold mask slips back into place.
“I have to go.” She holds her hand out to help me to my feet. I want to ask her to teach me more, but I don’t. Instead, I rush over to my trunk, pulling out one of the paperbacks they packed with my things.
“Take this.” I give her the book. “We can talk about it after you read it.” She looks at the book in my hand.
“’The Secret’ by Julie Garwood,” she reads the title out loud. It’s one of my favorites. It has two love stories. Not only about the hero and heroine falling in love but about the love of two best friends.
“It’s a classic. I’ll reread it on my Kindle.” She takes the book from my hand.
“I don’t know what game you’re playing, but it won’t work on me.” She doesn’t hand the book back to me as she steps onto the elevator. As the door starts to close, I see her open it. I can’t help but smile. I may be trapped inside this room, but I plan to make the best of it.
Chapter 9
Aidon
Two hours later, Bran and Hunt call in from an apartment on the east side. The address makes my eyebrows arch. “The Cloister?”
“Vieth’s orphans are rich, I guess,” answers Kailler. Her voice is odd, and her color is a little pink. I frown.
