Claimed

by M. Never

  “Does it really matter?” he questions stiffly. “You’re the only one I want to sleep with now.”

  “I want to know. How many women have you been with?”

  Kayne huffs, staring at me intensely. “Seven women.”

  “Seven? That’s it?” I can’t hide the surprise in my voice.

  “You were expecting a higher number?”

  “Honestly, yes.”

  “Why?”

  “Because . . .”

  “Because why?” he presses

  “Because . . . you’re you.”

  “What does that mean?” He’s clearly uncomfortable now.

  “You know exactly what that means.”

  “No, I don’t.” His eyes narrow.

  “Yes, you do. Don’t play dumb.”

  “Are you saying you like the way I touch you?” His mood morphs from touchy to feely. He can still give me whiplash.

  “I’m saying you are very skilled with your body. That’s all.”

  “So, you do like the way I touch you?” he asks again with a shameless grin, and I come to realize he hides behind sex when he feels insecure.

  “I liked it when you were massaging my scalp.”

  “Are you dancing around my question on purpose?” He squeezes my ass.

  “Maybe.”

  “Maybe I’ll show you what my body can really do.”

  “I think I already have an idea.” I grab the bottle of soap and squirt some into my hands. “My turn.”

  “Be my guest.”

  I rub Kayne’s chest, working a thick lather over his skin, and then moving my hands down his stomach.

  “You can go lower if you want.” He releases my waist and takes a small step back.

  “I’m happy right where I am.” I circle my hands over his rock-hard abs, which incidentally aren’t the only thing that’s rock-hard on him at the moment.

  “Don’t you want to know how many men I’ve been with?” I ask as I wash him.

  “No,” he scoffs. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m the only man you’ve ever been with.”

  That makes me laugh.

  “Why so few?” I keep probing.

  Kayne’s muscles tense under my fingertips. I look up into his eyes and see hesitation there.

  “Is there something I should know?” I query.

  “No.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes. Now who’s trying to read who?” His voice is firm. Not threatening, just cautious. There is definitely a side of him he doesn’t want to show.

  “Jett told me that trusting women is a hard limit for you,” I state with sensitivity.

  “And when did he tell you that?” His eyes smolder.

  “Last night.”

  “Oh, really?”

  “Yes. I was upset and confused. He was just trying to help.”

  “Right,” he sneers.

  “You once said that you wanted me to understand you.”

  Kayne sighs, then runs his hands down my face and kisses me lightly. “I know,” he replies pained. It nearly breaks my heart. “And I really want you to.”

  “So tell me why so few women.”

  Steam clouds around us as Kayne stares down at me. He wavers before answering.

  “I need to feel comfortable with a woman in order to have sex with her.”

  “Comfortable? Like in a relationship?”

  “No. No relationships. That was the last thing I wanted. I had a few girls on retainer who I slept with. Sex with no strings. Simpler that way.”

  “And no emotion,” I frown.

  “Emotion was expendable at the time.”

  “And now?”

  “Now it’s essential.” He swipes his thumb across my cheek. It feels like it leaves a trail of fire in its wake.

  “Did you keep those women on retainer while we were apart?” I ask without looking at him, circling my hands over his chest.

  “No. I haven’t been with anyone since you.”

  My eyes fly to his. I know they’re as wide as saucers. It’s been a year.

  “It’s true. I could break a steel plate with my forearm. You were, and are, the only person I want,” he says resolutely. The statement makes my heart flutter.

  “Why me?” I ask the burning question.

  Kayne shrugs, pulling me into his body. “I don’t know why exactly. You never intimidated me. You were always happy and smiling, and when you looked at me, it wasn’t anything but warm.”

  “Oh, I was warm all right,” I laugh. “I overheated every time I saw you.”

  “I guess I liked it.” He leans in to kiss me.

  “How old were you when you lost your virginity?” I ask right before his lips touch mine.

  “What does it matter?”

  “Just another piece of the puzzle.” I rub up against his erection in an attempt to relax him.

  Kayne closes his eyes and moans softly.

  “Nineteen. I was nineteen when I lost it,” he answers absentmindedly, getting lost in the friction of our bodies.

  “Did you love her?”

  “No. I have never been interested in love until I met you. If it wasn’t for Jett, I might still be a virgin.”

  “Did he introduce the two of you or something?”

  Kayne grabs hold of my waist and stops all movements. He’s breathing hard, his eyes are dilated, and water is spilling down his face.

  “It’s not like that. Jett was there with me, Ellie. We were on leave, and since I didn’t have any place to go, I went home to California with him. I don’t know if Jett ever told you the business his family runs or who his mother is—”

  “He told me,” I interrupt him.

  That last night at Mansion I pried Jett for information and he gave it to me, divulging his mother is a Madame, and why he grew up around a lot of women.

  “So you know what I’m talking about?” Kayne asks, and I nod. “It’s not like I got there, and he threw me into a bedroom with a random girl. It’s like he handpicked her specifically for me. She spent a few days warming up to me, getting to know me, and then one night we all went out and got drunk. Jett instigated the whole thing. Like he knew I wouldn’t go through with it unless I had moral support. He was probably right. So we did it. All three of us. Together.”

  “She became my first submissive, but I never loved her. And she never loved me, either. But you I love, whether you’re submissive or not.”

  “You sure about that?” I test him.

  “Absolutely, one-hundred-percent.” With that, he pins me against the wall and crushes his lips against mine. The kiss nearly steals the air right out of my lungs.

  “I want things to be different with you.” He rubs his nose against my cheek.

  “Different how?” I press my chest against his as my core becomes as hot as the running water.

  “I’ll show you.” He closes the distance between our mouths, and I brace for another soul shattering connection, but Kayne switches gears and kisses me unlike any way he has ever kissed me before—passionately, affectionately, devotedly, reverently—every word that could possibly describe an all-consuming, unstoppable love. And I know it’s too fast, too soon, but the weight of his affection overwhelms me to the point I can no longer think, or see, or even breathe. So I just kiss him back, pouring whatever amount of emotion I’m capable of giving him at the moment into the embrace.

  Kayne lifts me off the floor, forcing my legs around his hips as he steps under the steaming spray of water, rinsing off whatever suds are left on us. Then he turns the shower off. We never break our kiss as he steps out of the stall and walks into the bedroom, the two of us dripping wet.

  Not even bothering with a towel, he lays me down on the bed, trapping my body beneath his.

  “Hold onto me. Whatever you do, don’t let go.” He positions his erection between my legs, the head pushing at my entrance gently. He’s not even inside me, and I’m already responding, flooding with desire as the tip of his cock slides easily be
tween my wet folds.

  Then, in one fluid motion, he sinks into me so perfectly slow that I nearly split in two.

  “Oh, God.” I dig my face into his neck as my arms and legs and pussy all tighten painfully around him.

  “Ellie,” he moans, nudging my cheek with his nose coaxing me to look up at him. He drops kisses on my lips over and over as he rocks in and out of me.

  “You feel so good.” Kayne dips his tongue into my mouth, pressing his body harder against mine, his pelvis repeatedly brushing over my throbbing clit as our wet bodies slide easily against each other from the thin residue of soap still left on our skin.

  “So do you.” I get lost in the feel of him, the way his long, measured thrusts stretch and fill me, producing not only a physical response but an emotional one. My heart and pussy constrict at the same time as the orgasm inside me grows fast and furiously, threatening to unleash.

  “You’re going to make me come.” I squirm breathless underneath him, unable to control it.

  “Not yet, Ellie. Hold onto it.” He hugs me tighter and thrusts deeper. My body spasms. “You feel too fucking good.”

  But I can’t hold on, because he feels the exact same way, so thick and hard and overpowering.

  “Oh God, oh God, oh God.” I chant against his neck without a prayer. “Kayne!” My orgasm steamrolls me, and I tumble over the edge, my clit aching and muscles contracting violently.

  A few moments later, at the tail end of my internal frenzy, Kayne grabs my thigh with one hand and slams into me, groaning in what sounds like unbearable pleasure.

  He collapses on top of me once his orgasm subsides, wrapping me in his arms and breathing heavily.

  “I love you.” The words flow out in a whisper as he hugs me tightly. I flutter my eyes open and stare up at the thin white fabric covering the canopy bed, a whirlwind of emotions running through me.

  “I know,” I kiss the side of his face. It’s the only response I have. I’m not ready to go there. He’s so sure about how he feels. And although I want to be here, with him, I’m still coming to terms with what I want and how much I can give.

  “Good, always remember that.” He kisses my forehead and then rolls off me, pulling me into his side so I am snuggled in the crook of his arm. I lay my head on his chest and listen to his heartbeat. It’s such a strong, soothing sound, almost hypnotic. I put my hand next to my ear to feel it.

  “It beats because of you.”

  “What?”

  “It never beat until I met you.” He puts his hand over mine.

  “I find that hard to believe.”

  “It’s true. I never had a reason to live until you, Ellie.”

  I blush and hide my face. How can he be so open? I thought men were supposed to be closed off and devoid of all emotion?

  “Did I say something to upset you?”

  “No,” I snuggle closer to him, “you’re just making it very hard to resist you.”

  “Baby, that’s the idea.” He kisses my head and laughs.

  I doze off warm and content in Kayne’s arms as the last bit of light fades away from the day.

  “HEY, SLEEPYHEAD,” KAYNE SHAKES ME lightly. “We’re going to be late for dinner.”

  I crack open my eyes to find him showered and dressed. He smells good, like shaving cream. “I let you sleep as long as I could.”

  “Do we have to go?” I stretch sleepily.

  “Yes. We promised.” It sounds like there’s no getting out of it.

  “Fine.” If my stomach wasn’t rumbling, I would throw the covers over my head and protest.

  “Up you go, sleeping beauty.” Kayne picks me up off the bed and I go limp in his arms. “Funny,” he mocks. “Are you always such a lazy riser?”

  “No. Only when I’m interrupted from such a comfortable sleep.” He carries me into the bathroom.

  “A hot bath should help wake you up.” I look down to see the tub full of water and overflowing with bubbles.

  I look up and smile at him. “Now you’re just sucking up.”

  “Maybe a little.” He grins, his blue eyes shining.

  I kiss him on the cheek, his skin smooth against my lips. He presses his face into the kiss and moans softly. Not a ‘you’re making me hot’ kind of moan. An ‘I love that gesture’ kind of moan. It makes me all warm and tingly inside.

  “We have to hurry.” Kayne places me on my feet in the tub. “Ten minutes enough time to soak?”

  “Yes.” I drop down into the water, the bubbles covering up my body. “I’m surprised you’re letting me bathe alone.”

  “I figured you might want some time to yourself. Am I wrong?”

  “Yes and no,” I answer, leaving it at that. “I’ll be out in a few.”

  Kayne nods then walks out, closing the door behind him. I lean against the edge of tub and gaze out the picture window into the dark. I daydream about this afternoon. The way Kayne touched me, the things he said. “I love you.” It’s never been like that between us before. It felt like he was trying to give me everything. Every part of him. It’s overwhelming in a good and bad way. I don’t want to rush into anything, and I don’t want to feel too much, but Kayne is a force to be reckoned with; especially when it comes to sex, love, even emotion.

  “Ellie?” Kayne knocks.

  “Times up?” I answer.

  “For now.”

  I climb out of the tub and dry off. I walk out of the bathroom and head for my bedroom, thinking about what I should wear.

  “Where are you going?” Kayne asks from the chair in the corner of the room. He’s holding his phone, regarding me smugly.

  “To get dressed. My clothes are in the other room.”

  “Not anymore.” He nods his head toward the door behind him.

  I walk cautiously by him and through the doorway. I’ll be damned, he moved me in. Everything I stuffed into my suitcase is now hanging on one side of the closet, opposite his clothes, which are situated just as neatly.

  “Been busy have you?” I ask as he stands behind me.

  “I didn’t think you’d mind.” He kisses my bare shoulder.

  “I don’t, but only because I hate unpacking.”

  “See? I’m good for something.”

  “You’re good for a few things. Like telling me where you hid my underwear.” I walk into the closet. It’s as big as the bathroom in my apartment.

  Kayne follows me in and pulls open a drawer.

  “Underwear and bras.” He opens the next one down. “Shirts.” And then the last, grazing my arm with his lips as he goes. “Bathing suits.”

  “Are you always so organized?” I sigh from the heat of his mouth.

  “Yes. Repercussion of military life. I’m always on time, too. So get dressed,” he hisses in my ear playfully then leaves.

  Fine then.

  I dress quickly in a black miniskirt and midriff top with a flowy sheer overlay stitched with a funky black, white, and peach pattern. It was an impulse buy, but I like it. Kayne will hate it. I don’t regret the rash purchase one bit. I throw my damp hair into a high bun and attempt some makeup. Lastly, I rub some shimmery lotion on my arms and legs to moisturize and highlight my tanned skin.

  I walk out of the bedroom exactly twenty minutes later and Kayne’s jaw drops.

  “Like my outfit?” I spin.

  “No.”

  I laugh. Didn’t think so.

  “Not a patterns guy?” I curl my lip.

  He growls. “No, I’m not a ‘my girlfriend’s skirt is so short she’s flashing the world her ass’ kind of guy.”

  “Hmm,” I muse. “I must have missed the conversation where we established labels.”

  He glares at me.

  “Are we going? I know how much you hate to be late.” I walk out of the bedroom.

  “Brat,” he snaps from behind me.

  I smirk devilishly and saunter out the front door. I can actually feel the frustration radiating from Kayne’s body. It’s increasing the island’s alrea
dy tropical temperature. I love it.

  After a silent ride with a brooding Kayne, we make it to the restaurant right on time. He steps out first then escorts me. Matias smiles at us. I smile back, Kayne just grimaces.

  “Have a nice evening,” he says jovially and drives away. Apparently, I’m not the only one amused by Kayne’s annoyance.

  I grab his hand and bat my eyelashes at him. “Are you going to be pissy all night?”

  “Maybe,” he answers flatly.

  This evening should be fun, sitting across from my bisexual one-night stand trying to make nice, while my ex-slave owner acts like a petulant child beside me. Awesome.

  I heave a breath and start walking for the door, but am stopped abruptly by Kayne’s statue-like stance. He yanks me into his chest and locks me against him with one arm.

  “I hate that outfit,” he growls. “I hate that I have to figure out a way to walk in front of you and behind you all at the same time while resisting the urge to stab out every single eye that ogles you. How’s that for honesty?”

  “You did say you didn’t want to keep anything from me.” I inhale sharply as he tightens his hold.

  “You look so hot my cock is on fire,” he whispers in my ear while people pass by us. “I don’t want you making any other man feel that way.” He slips his finger between my legs and strokes my clit.

  “Kayne!” I gasp, grabbing his wrist. “We’re in public.”

  “I know.” He grabs my ass. “Mine.”

  I look up at him with flushed cheeks and a racing heart. For a fleeting second, he holds my stare.

  “Yours or not, you still don’t get to tell me what to wear.”

  “We’ll see.” He releases me, and I stumble a little. Jerk still has the power to immobilize me. “You’re missing something.”

  “I’m wearing underwear,” I huff.

  He smiles, trying desperately to contain his composure. “That’s not what I meant.”

  “Oh. What did you mean?” I pull down the hem of my skirt. Kayne reaches into his pocket and pulls something out. He opens his hand and inside are a small pair of stud earrings.

  I look up at him. “For me?”

  “Well, I don’t have my ears pierced, and I think they might clash with this shirt.”

  “You sound like Jett now.” I take the earrings after he offers them to me. They’re so different. Not a common pair of studs. These look like tiny balls of tangled platinum yarn. Sort of appropriate considering that’s how my insides felt when I got here.