by Nicola Jane
Mr. Calderson stops me. “Eva, can I reschedule that Friday meeting for Monday? I can’t find Michelle anywhere, so could you pass it on to her?” I pull out my cell and change the appointment. It means changing around a few other appointments on Monday, but I’m sure Michelle would want Mr. Calderson to be prioritised.
“Of course. I’ll change that now and update Michelle.” I wander around the wine bar. Michelle seems to have vanished. I lean over the bar and wave at the manager. “Hi, Carlos. Have you seen Michelle anywhere?” I ask. We schedule a lot of meetings in his bar, so Carlos knows us well. He points to the back room, a small area that leads out back to where the deliveries usually come in. Maybe she’s feeling ill? Champagne goes straight to her head.
Stepping out into the alley, I look around. It’s dark and there’re piles of rubbish stacked at one end. I walk further along and freeze when I hear moaning from around the corner. I cover my mouth to hide my sniggering. This could be my big chance to discover who Michelle is having sex with. I press myself against the wall and carefully step closer, then take a deep breath and peer around the wall. Nothing could have prepared me for the sight of Michelle standing with her hands pressed against the wall, her dress around her waist, and her legs splayed open. Behind her, fucking her fast and hard, is Cree.
My mouth falls open in shock and I steady myself against the wall. I feel dizzy. I can’t take my eyes off them even though I know I shouldn’t watch.
Cree’s never looked as masculine and strong as he does right now, with his large hands gripping her tiny waist. He’s slamming against her so hard, I wonder how she’s even staying upright. Suddenly, he grabs her and turns her to face him, then pushes her to crouch before him. He removes the condom he was wearing and takes his erection in his hand. I marvel at the size of his cock and continue to stare as he moves his hand back and forth. Michelle opens her mouth and he begins to fuck her mouth using the same amount of force that he used moments ago. She gags, but he doesn’t stop. Instead, he gets faster and then roars. The sound makes me jump in fright and I move back against the wall, praying the sudden movement didn’t catch their attention.
I begin to creep back towards the bar as quickly as I can. When I get to the door, it’s locked. “Noooo,” I hiss under my breath. “Fuck.” I look back up the alley and pray that Michelle and Cree go back through the main entrance. I tug at the door and then hear the sound of Michelle laughing. I take a deep breath and straighten my shoulders. I march with purpose towards their direction just as they appear around the corner.
I smile. “Michelle, I was looking for you,” I say, waving my cell phone in the air. “Mr. Calderson needs to change his appointment on Friday.” Michelle takes a second to process my sudden appearance. I don’t bother to look at Cree. “The only thing is, he asked for Monday, and you already have the Clemmie family booked in. Shall I send them an email and delay them an hour?”
“Yes, Eva, thank you. I was just getting some air,” she says awkwardly. “Callum’s bodyguard kindly offered to stand with me. You know how I am after a glass of champagne.” I smile in understanding and nod once. “How rude of me. Eva, this is Elijah Cree. Elijah, this is my personal assistant, Eva.” I catch Cree’s eyes. He’s scowling at me—nothing new there. We get to the closed door and I tug, pretending I don’t know it’s locked. Cree nudges me out of the way and produces a key. It opens the door and Michelle sweeps past us and heads inside without a backward glance. I go to follow, but Cree takes my wrist and pulls me back, letting the door close again.
“You didn’t say you worked for NewVision,” he grits out.
“You didn’t tell me you were fucking my boss,” I almost screech. “She’s married!”
“You saw,” he mutters, looking pained.
“Yes, I saw,” I growl through gritted teeth. “She has children.”
“That’s her problem, not mine,” he says.
“You realise that I can go after Lake now,” I say, putting my hands on my hips.
His brow furrows. “How’d ya figure that out?”
“You’re having sex with my boss. You can no longer hold the moral ground over who fucks who.” I stomp past him and march up the alleyway. I’ll just have to go in through the front entrance. I hear his heavy boots gaining on me and resist the urge to break into a run.
“Eva,” he growls, but I continue to march away, ignoring him. “Eva,” he shouts again.
Cree
I pick up my pace and catch her wrist again. This time, she pulls herself free. “What is it with you and grabbing me?” she hisses, rubbing her wrist.
“Well, if you’d stop, I wouldn’t have to.” I sigh. “This doesn’t change anything. You and Lake are never gonna happen.”
She stomps her foot and releases a low growl. “You drive me crazy!”
“Did you fuck that geek the other night?” I ask. It’s a question I’ve been needing to know the answer to since I saw her with him.
“Yes,” she says, but I know she’s lying. “And it was amazing.” She turns to walk away again, so this time I catch her around the waist and lift her off her feet. She squeals and wriggles to free herself. It sends a volt through me and I shift her to my side so she doesn’t feel my obvious erection.
I shove her into a dark shop doorway and place my hands on either side of her to cage her in. “Liar,” I say. “If you did fuck, then you were left unsatisfied. No woman would be as feisty as you were just then if they’d had a good orgasm.”
“You’re so disgusting,” she mutters. “Eurgh!” she cries. “I can’t believe you’re having sex with my boss.”
“If it makes you feel better, her husband is just as bad. He knows she fucks around and he doesn’t care because he does it too.”
“Why are they together?” she wails.
I shrug. “Money?” I suggest.
“That makes a mockery of marriage.”
“Marriage is bullshit,” I mutter, and her eyes widen.
“How can you say that?” she whispers. “Marriage is beautiful. It’s a promise to love someone for the rest of your life.”
“Is that what you want with geek boy?” I ask.
She pauses and then shrugs her shoulders. “Maybe.”
I step closer and she presses herself against the door. “You believe in love, Eva?” I ask and she nods. Her eyes are staring at me with wonder. “You want marriage, kids, a dog?” I add and she nods again. “That’s exactly what I needed to hear,” I say. It’s everything I can never give her, and it’s the reason I have to keep away from her, but trapping her here against this door, where her tits spill over her dress and her leg pokes from the slit that goes to her thigh, I can’t help but want to taste her.
My hand goes to her cheek and I cup her face gently. She closes her eyes and tilts her head slightly into my palm. Her chest rises and falls with each deep breath she takes. I swallow and move my mouth inches from hers. “Just one taste,” I whisper before sealing my lips over hers. Gently, carefully, treating her like the delicate flower she is, I move my mouth against hers. Her lips are soft, and when she gives me access, I sweep my tongue against hers. My chest swells with warmth, and something about her feels so right that for a second I want it all. I want to be selfish and take it all, ruin her for everyone who goes there after me. But I can’t. I can’t spoil her with my darkness.
I feel the moment her hands begin to move from her sides and up towards my chest. I catch them before they make contact and I break the kiss. She looks to where I hold her and frowns. “Now, stay the hell away from me and my brothers,” I hiss, then I drop her hands and stalk away.
Callum’s waiting by the bar. He raises a glass when he sees me. “Thought you’d met a fine woman and left me.” He grins, and Chains sniggers from beside him. Callum’s eyes go to the door and he spots Eva walking in. He grins at me. “Oh, you met Eva?”
“No,” I say coldly.
“Oh, come on, you can tell me. I’ve been trying to crack that for
months. I bet she fucks like a greedy little bitch.” He smirks, and I shake away the vision of me ripping his head off. Chains senses my burning desire for blood and asks me for a word. I follow him away from Callum.
“Shit, brother, I thought you were gonna kill him then and there. Did something happen with you and Eva?”
“No,” I growl. “Yes. Fuck!” I shake my head. I hate talking.
“Look, you don’t have to tell me, VP. I know you hate to talk,” he says.
“She caught me fucking Callum’s wife.”
Chains laughs hard. “Shit. What did she say?”
“That it leaves Lake open for her because apparently that’s how it works?”
“I think Lake got your message loud and clear when you broke his nose. He won’t even look at her again, trust me.”
“Everywhere I turn, she’s there. I can’t get away from her. And now she works for the bitch I’m screwing.”
“Get a new bitch?” suggests Chains. I nod. Maybe I’ll have to. “And you don’t think it can be her?” he asks, looking across the room. I follow his gaze to where Eva is. “Cos if you don’t, I think Callum will.”
Callum has her cornered. “He’s a sleazeball,” I mutter. I’ve watched him with other women. He often books out hotels after the parties Michelle hasn’t attended and takes women back. “Eva isn’t like that. She believes in love and marriage. She wouldn’t go off with a married man.”
“What makes you so certain? Maybe she feels sorry for him after she caught you and his wife together?” asks Chains. Eva glances around like she’s looking for help and I’m about to go over when she raises her knee and it connects with Callum’s balls. He doubles over and she steps around him, disappearing into the crowd, leaving him coughing and spluttering. “Or maybe not,” Chains adds and laughs.
Chapter Four
Eva
That piece of shit. I shudder. “What the hell did he do?” asks Kyle.
“He invited me to an after-party,” I say.
Kyle frowns. “And you kneed him in the balls for that?”
“It was at a sex club!” I add, and he presses his lips together in a fine line.
“Oh my god, do you think Michelle goes there with him?” He gasps, and I shudder again. The thought of them swinging and tying each other up makes me want to vomit. They’re not a bad looking couple. In fact, they look great together. They are exactly how I picture a powerful business couple. But he’s so creepy and she’s so . . . well, strait-laced. Seeing her with Cree just now opened my eyes. I fill Kyle in on what I’d seen earlier, leaving out Cree’s identity.
“So, we don’t know him then?” he asks with disappointment.
“No. He left afterward, and I couldn’t get a good look at him.”
Kyle waves at a man across the room who is waiting by the door with his jacket. “I have to go, Eva. I have a little after-party of my own. Will you be okay with Mr. Creepy Balls around?”
I laugh and nod, kissing him on the cheek. “Have fun.”
I stay another half an hour and then decide to leave. I’ve schmoozed as much as I can for one night. I can’t find Michelle to say goodbye, and I imagine she’s gone off with Cree again. His kiss is playing on a loop in my mind. It was so gentle, so sweet, and so not like Cree. I groan. I have to forget about it. He’s an ass and the way he treated me afterward, that can’t ever happen again.
I step outside and look around for a taxicab. The queue is a mile long, so I take a slow walk to the back. I hear the rumble of a bike and I know without a doubt it’s Cree. I shrink down slightly, trying to hide behind the couple in front of me. As the motorcycle slows down, I close my eyes and pray he doesn’t spot me. The last thing I need is another mind fuck.
“Get on.” His voice rumbles through me and I shiver. When the hell did I start reacting to this ass? “Now,” he adds, thrusting a helmet at me. I glance down at my long skirt—we’ve been here before. He never wants to give me a ride home when I’m wearing jeans.
“I’ll accept your ride, but only because this queue is a mile long and I’m tired.” I push the helmet on and make a show of lifting my skirt, splitting it right up my leg, and then climbing on behind him. I push myself right up against him and then wrap the material around me and into my lap. I put my arms around his waist, but he removes them and points to a bar behind me. I roll my eyes. Ass. He revs the engine and pulls away at speed, and I do my best to grip on tight.
He stops outside my house and turns off the engine. “Thanks. Goodnight,” I say coldly, thrusting the helmet into his chest. He steps off the bike. “What are you doing?”
“Checking the house,” he says. He walks ahead and I stare after him, bewildered.
“You told me to stay the fuck away from you and your brothers. How can I do that when you force me to get a lift with you and you check my house?”
“Open the door.”
“Fucking ass,” I mumble under my breath.
Inside, he does a quick check of the entire house, then joins me in the kitchen as I’m filling a glass with wine. I catch him staring at it disapprovingly, so I slam the bottle down. “If you’re done, I have things to be getting on with.”
“What did Callum say to you?”
“He invited me to a sex party. Do you do that with his wife? Attend sex parties?” I demand. I don’t know why the thought bothers me, but it does. He stays quiet. “Do you join both of them?”
“No,” he snaps. “I don’t think he’ll ask you again. He was pretty mad about the whole kneeing incident.”
“Good. He deserved it. Unzip me,” I snap, turning my back to him and lifting my hair. He doesn’t even attempt to unzip me. I look back over my shoulder and see his hands hovering near me. A cruel plan forms to repay him for his rejection earlier. “I can’t reach it on my own,” I explain, softening my voice slightly. He gently takes the zipper and slowly pulls it down to my butt.
“You know,” I begin, heading into my laundry room. “I have the comfiest t-shirt in here somewhere,” I say, dropping my dress and letting it pool at my feet. I keep my back to him. The dress required a thong and no bra, so I’m sure his view is enough to make him take notice of me. I grab the t-shirt and smile to myself. It’s huge on me, and when I step back out into the kitchen, I hold my arms up and do a little spin. It almost comes to my knees.
“Are you fucking shitting me,” he growls.
I smile innocently. “What?”
“Lake gave you a shirt?” he hisses.
“He’s so sweet,” I gush.
“Take it off,” snaps Cree as he removes his own shirt. “Eva, take it off!” he growls.
I arch an eyebrow when he throws his shirt at my feet. I grip the bottom of the shirt I’m wearing and begin to lift it until he realises what I’m about to do. “Not here,” he yells. I lift it higher and he spins around so his back is to me. I laugh and pull his shirt on.
“Chill out, misery. I’m covered.”
He turns back to face me. I’ve purposely left the buttons open and he points at me. “Don’t poke the tiger in me. He doesn’t play nice,” Cree warns. “Put it on properly.” I sulkily fasten the buttons. I’ve never met a man so immune to female charm. He takes two long strides and swoops down to collect Lake’s shirt from the floor. “I’ll make sure he gets this back.”
I feel bad—he’s already broken Lake’s nose. “I asked him for it. It was when I first came to stay at the club.”
“Did he watch you put it on?” he growls. I shake my head. “Why did you ask for it?”
“It smelt of him,” I mumble weakly. “I like good aftershave.”
He steps into my space, filling my nose with his own aftershave. “Why can’t I stay away from you?” he whispers.
“Why won’t you let me touch you?” I whisper. His lips are only inches from mine.
“I have to go,” he says quietly, but he doesn’t move. I raise my hand slowly, but as it gets closer to his chest, he hooks his fingers into my own.
“Don’t,” he mutters, and it’s almost like a plea. I lift my other hand and he hooks that too, holding them both up in the air at either side of my head. He walks me backwards until I hit the refrigerator, then looks down at the open top button of the shirt. I carefully wrap my leg around his and he presses closer.
I lick my lower lip and he follows the movement with his eyes. “How do you fuck, if you don’t like being touched?” I whisper. His breath hitches when I say the word ‘fuck’. I feel his bulge straining in his jeans and pressing into my stomach. “Do you honestly . . . ” I whisper, brushing my lips lightly over his. “Think that . . . ” I run my tongue over his lips and he hisses. “I would fuck you after I witnessed you fucking my boss?” It takes a second for my words to hit his sex-fogged brain, but the moment it does, he releases me. “Now, get the hell out of here,” I snap.
Cree
I back away from Eva, not sure whether to be mad as hell at her blatant flirting only for her to shoot me down or if I should high five her for her bravery. The anger in her eyes lights me up. Everything in me wants to fuck the mad out of her. I shake my head and snigger. As I leave, I dump Lake’s t-shirt in the garbage out front.
I get back to the club and Chains is outside smoking a cigarette. “Brother,” he greets me with a smile. “Didn’t expect to see you back here.”
“I just dropped her at home,” I mutter.
“Riggs wants a word. He’s in his office.”
I tap on the office door and enter before he answers. He’s already poured me a glass of bourbon. “You’re avoiding your wife,” I state.
“No,” he says. “We have a problem.”
I check my watch. “It’s two in the morning. It couldn’t wait? I think you’re avoiding Anna and her baby-making plans.”
“The mayor wants us to look into Callum Myles. I met with him earlier and he mentioned him. When I told him you were doing some security work for Myles, he told me some shit.” I take a seat and knock back my drink in one go. “The mayor thinks he’s into some shady shit.”
