For His Pleasure

by Suzanne Rock

  On the way out of the club Deacon and the domme exchanged nods, just enough to suggest that they were friends, but nothing more. Wes thought it odd, considering Deacon supposedly just got into town a week ago, but before he could think much about it, Deacon had his arm around Wes’s shoulders and was leading him to his motorcycle.

  Sex with Deacon was like the scene with the domme. Hot and erotic, but devoid of anything real. Wes caught himself comparing Deacon to Marco and found him lacking in every way. While sex with Marco had been kinky, it was also intimate. Deacon didn’t want to touch or kiss, and he didn’t want to snuggle in the afterglow. He just wanted a fuck and to fuck hard. Wes obliged and tried to get into the moment, but in the end he felt more used than anything else.

  When Wes woke up in the morning, he wasn’t surprised to find Deacon gone. He was surprised to find a note, however. It was an invitation to meet him back at the club that night.

  “Yes. About that,” Wes said. “I used to frequent Dark Desires, but have been away from the scene for a few months. Did you happen to notice if the woman I was with had been in the club before?”

  Landon thought for a moment. “I think this was the first time I’ve seen her, although I have to admit that I haven’t been to the club as often since the engagement.”

  Wes nodded. “How are you doing about that, by the way?”

  Landon shrugged. “I’m okay. Just wish that the media would leave it alone.” He caught Wes’s curious expression and looked away. “The marriage was in name only,” he explained. “More like a business deal. I barely knew the woman. I don’t—I don’t normally go for her type.”

  “The billionaire socialite type?”

  “The female type.”

  Wes snorted. “Yeah, I had heard that.”

  Landon frowned and averted his gaze. “Most people have. And that’s why I’m struggling with my investors.”

  “Because you’re gay?”

  “Shh.” Landon glanced around. “It’s more complicated than that, but yes, being gay is part of it.”

  Wes considered him for a moment before continuing. “Did you see the guy I was with last night when the scene ended?”

  Landon’s eyes widened. “Yes. Are you two…” He waved his fingers in the air between them.

  “Oh, nah.” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “It was just a one-night thing. I thought perhaps it could turn into something more, but it didn’t work out.”

  “I see. So you wouldn’t mind if I…”

  Wes smiled. “No. Knock yourself out.” He pulled out Deacon’s note and handed it to him. “He’ll be going to Dark Desires again tonight.”

  “Thanks. It’s been a long time since I did more than watch. I owe you one.”

  “No, consider it a gift. I know what it feels like to be poked fun at over who you are.” Wes patted his arm. “Just do yourself a favor and stay away from that woman.”

  “Why?”

  “There’s something not right about her.” He ran his hand over his lower back, remembering the flogging he had gotten the night before. “She tends to be a little rough on her subs.”

  “Ah, well. Like I said, I tend to shy away from the more feminine clientele.”

  “Then you shouldn’t have a problem.” Wes dropped his arm and adjusted his sunglasses down onto his nose. “You shouldn’t have any problem at all.”

  * * *

  “What’s wrong?” Camille asked as she came into the kitchen.

  Ari frowned and grabbed the bottled water from her hand. “This charity is in worse shape than I thought.”

  “I know. I had to let the accountant go.”

  “Another one?” Ari rubbed her forehead. “Why?”

  Camille slipped into the seat opposite her. “She wasn’t working out.”

  “Meaning…”

  “Meaning, she had more interest in banging our public relations coordinator than balancing the books.”

  “So we don’t have a public relations person, either?”

  “I’m afraid not.”

  “So we lost half of ARI’S KIDS’ governing board.”

  “Just you and me.” Camille patted her friend’s shoulder. “Sorry.”

  Ari threw down her pen. “What a nightmare.” Nothing was going right. She’d been up half the night trying to figure out what to do about Jason. Balancing the books was supposed to be a nice distraction, but it was turning into a headache. “Do you have any ibuprofen?”

  “Sure.” Camille hesitated, nibbling on her lip. “I’m really sorry, Ari. I wanted to tell you, but you had been so busy with the wedding.”

  “It’s okay, Camille. I understand.”

  “You’ve been so upset and distracted this morning. Why don’t you take a break?”

  “I wish I could.” She patted her friend’s hand. “I’ll be fine, Camille. Honest.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure.”

  “Okay, if you say so.” She didn’t look convinced, but went to get Ari the medicine anyway.

  Ari waited until Camille went to retrieve the medicine before she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. This charity was an organizational nightmare. So much so that she wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to repair all of the damage without some help. Picking up her pen, she flipped through the stack of receipts Camille had given her about an hour ago and tried to see if there were any more corners they could cut, at least until she could get her hands on some money.

  “Here you go.” Camille reentered the kitchen a few minutes later and handed her two pills and some water.

  “Thanks, Camille.” Ari looked up at her friend, but her gaze was drawn to a movement over her shoulder. She widened her eyes. “Jason.”

  “Ari.” He gave her a half-smile, looking rather uncomfortable.

  “I called him this morning,” Camille said. “I hope you don’t mind.”

  Ari dragged her gaze away from Jason and stared at her friend.

  “You mentioned right before bed last night that you wanted to talk to him.” Camille averted her gaze. “I thought I’d help things along.”

  Ari wasn’t quite sure what to say. “I have to go over the books.”

  “Just a few moments, Ari,” Jason said. “That’s all I’ll need.”

  “Talk to him, Ari,” Camille said. “I’ve been watching you all morning. You’re not focusing. You need to clean up one mess before you even think of tackling another.”

  Ari shifted her gaze between Camille and Jason, feeling a little ambushed. “Fine. Just a few moments.”

  “I have to go grocery shopping, anyway,” Camille said.

  Ari waited until Camille left before she looked at her watch. “You have five minutes.”

  “You weren’t at the apartment,” he said.

  “Did you really expect me to stay? You’ve been lying to me, Jason. Our whole relationship is a sham. You aren’t who I thought you were.”

  “And your reaction was the exact reason why I waited so long to tell you.” He slid into the seat next to her.

  Ari crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair. “I don’t want to stay with someone who tries to manipulate me.”

  “I’ll admit that in the beginning, I asked you out to dinner because I thought that I could learn more about your family, but after dinner…”

  “Yes?” she asked when he didn’t continue.

  He looked down at the receipts scattered on the kitchen table. “I felt differently.”

  “So you never used any of the information I gave you to edge out my family in the hotel business?”

  He jerked his gaze back up to meet hers. “I didn’t say that.”

  Ari snorted. “I’ve heard enough. I can’t be with someone I don’t trust. Good-bye, Jason.”

  “Wait. You can’t expect me to unhear things, Ari, especially when it has to do with my competition.”

  She turned away from him, hoping that he’d just go away.

  “Having said that, I n
ever actively went out looking for information.” He brushed his fingers over her arm, then took her hand. “And when I did use information, it was only to protect myself and my assets, never to take advantage of your family. Once I realized that I cared about you I never wanted to hurt you, Ari. You mean too much to me.”

  Ari frowned and pulled her hand away. “How do I know you aren’t trying to con me now?”

  “The same way I know that you aren’t some ignorant party girl who never thinks beyond a good time.” He leaned in closer. “You’re more than your past, Ari … and so am I.”

  She inched closer and lowered her voice. “You slept with all of those women for money and information. Do you have any idea how dirty that makes me feel?”

  “I’m sorry, Ari. If I could take it all back, I would. It happened a long time ago, before we met.” He sighed and pushed his hand through his hair. “And since that charity race I haven’t been with anyone else.”

  She raised her brows. “Seriously?”

  “Seriously.” He shifted to the edge of his seat. “If I was really the dirty con man you’re making me out to be, don’t you think that my photograph would be in the papers every day with a different girl hanging on my arm? Wouldn’t I have already tried to tear your family down?”

  She narrowed her gaze. “How do I know you haven’t tried and failed?”

  He flashed her his irresistible dimple. “Since when have I ever failed at anything?”

  “You have a point.” She tried not to smile, but his easy, self-satisfied grin was contagious.

  “The truth is, I like having your brother around. He provides healthy competition and keeps things interesting. Without your family, things would get stale and boring.” He took her hand in his again. “In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t like being predictable.”

  She smirked and avoided his gaze. “No, you don’t.”

  “This business with the loan shark is unpredictable, but not in a good way.” He squeezed her fingers as his smile faded. “I’ve thought about it for days, and still can’t figure it out.”

  “What do you mean? Your identity was stolen. There’s nothing to figure out.”

  “Perhaps.” Her rubbed his chin. “But I can’t shake the feeling that all of this isn’t some random coincidence. The amount I owe is a round number—ten million. One would think that if it was a true gambling debt, it wouldn’t be so vague. The number would be something more specific, perhaps with change.”

  “Perhaps you can only borrow in round numbers.”

  “Maybe.” He shook his head. “But it’s also large. It would be bad business for a loan shark to let debt climb so high without some sort of collateral, don’t you think?” He rubbed his chin. “I don’t gamble, so I don’t know. I just have this feeling that this is all some sort of elaborate set up.”

  “I don’t understand. Why would anyone target you?”

  He lowered his arm and shrugged. “Because I have money. Because my name is recognizable. Who knows?” He let go of her hand and leaned back in his chair. “I’ve gotten where I am today based on instinct and right now my instincts tell me that there is more to this loan shark business than we know.”

  Ari frowned as she considered the possibilities. “Maybe one of the women you’ve slept with is attempting retribution? Someone must have made the connection by now. Your face is all over the media.”

  “Yes, but it was such a long time ago, and most of the women have no hard feelings. They knew what they were doing and consider the money they spent on me as part of the deal.”

  “You said ‘most.’”

  Jason considered her for a moment. “There was one woman who was bitter. I guess I got too good at my craft. She believed that we’d have a future together. Her tastes were … eccentric. She liked to hurt people in the bedroom. Both physically, with floggers and clamps, and emotionally through humiliation.”

  “Oh.” Ari’s features took on a look of concern. “She hurt you?”

  “Like I said, it was a long time ago.”

  “Do you … Did you enjoy it?”

  He offered her a sad smile. “She was the tipping point. After being with her a couple of times I knew I could no longer continue being something I wasn’t. While she enjoyed sadomasochistic bedroom games, I did not.”

  “What happened?”

  “I confronted my brother and told him that I wanted out. He didn’t like it, but once I made up my mind, there wasn’t much he could do.”

  “Instead of letting others use you, you were able to take control of your life, get a job, and do things on your own.”

  He nodded. “I became a different person after that. Stronger.”

  “I envy you for that,” she murmured. “All my life my brothers have controlled what I say and do. I’d kill to be able to push away their money like my sister, Gianna, and be independent.”

  “And you can do that, Ari. That same determination I had back then is inside you now. I can see it.”

  Ari smiled and turned away from him to look out the window. “What happened to Deacon?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You said that you were running the con together. When you decided to go legit, what happened to him?”

  Jason sighed. “Unfortunately, Deacon never really saw things the way I did. I think he resents my leaving him to start my own business.”

  “And the woman you left? Was she angry?”

  “She was at first, but Deacon smoothed things over. I haven’t heard from her since.”

  “So you really have no idea why you’re being targeted.”

  “No, all I know is that we both need to keep a low profile for a while.”

  “We?” She shook her head. “I have nothing to do with this.”

  “Unfortunately, they know that you’re connected to me. That puts you at risk.” He nodded to her head. “You’ve seen what they can do. These people are volatile. I plan on paying what they ask, but there’s always a chance that they could turn around and want more, or want to make me suffer in other ways for taking too long to pay them.”

  Ari rubbed her forehead. “I can’t stay here, Jason. I need to live my life.”

  “You can’t leave this apartment. Not yet, anyway. I’m on my way to get the money for the exchange. Deacon is going to handle everything for me. Once I have it all lined up, I’ll come for you.”

  “Then what?”

  “We’ll lay low for a while until all of this blows over.”

  “Lay low? You know me, Jason. I can’t just hang out somewhere indefinitely. I need to stay busy. If I don’t have my charity, then I won’t know what to do with myself.”

  “You won’t be alone. I’ll be with you.”

  “And that changes things … how?”

  Something hot and hungry flashed through his gaze as he inched closer. “I can help keep you from being idle.”

  She raised her brows. “Oh really?”

  He nodded and slid his fingers over her bare arm. “If I remember correctly, we’re quite good at finding ways to fill the time.”

  Warm tingles spread over her skin as she thought about their impulsive sex games. “We are pretty good at that, aren’t we?” She smiled and pressed her forehead to his. “Okay, you’ve convinced me.”

  “Good.” He inched away and pulled a small package out of his suit jacket. “Here.”

  “What’s this?”

  “Meet me in that coffee shop we used to go to in Faneuil Hall in two hours and wear what’s in that package.”

  She started to fold the paper back. “What does this package have to do—”

  “Just promise me.”

  She jerked her gaze up to meet his. “Okay.”

  He kissed her temple. “Two hours.”

  “Okay.”

  As Jason left, she opened the large envelope and dumped the contents on the table. There was a flash of black silk and lace, enough to make her heartbeat quicken. Slowly she held up the garment and inspected
the tiny scrap of fabric. There was something in the lining …

  “Vibrating underwear.” She ran her fingers over the black lace in surprise. What was Jason thinking?

  She looked inside the envelope once more and noticed that there was no remote. How odd. Shrugging, she cleaned up the kitchen and took the package upstairs to change. She had no idea what Jason was up to, but she was determined to find out.

  Chapter 18

  Ari settled herself in one of the outside tables of the small café and glanced around the crowd, looking for him. The place was packed. Good weather had brought out the tourists, and the popular spot was filled to the brim with shoppers. She sipped her latte and tried to ignore the driver Jason had sent to take her to the café, who insisted that he hang out with her until Jason arrived “just in case something happened.”

  She wasn’t an idiot. The man was larger than an eighteen-wheeler and looked as if he could muscle a bull to the ground and not break a sweat. Jason had sent him to protect Ari from the loan shark.

  Not that she minded. It showed that Jason cared.

  “There you are.” Deacon came over and sat in the seat across from her. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”

  “You have?”

  “Yes.” He turned the chair around and straddled it. “I came to tell you that you’re going to develop a bad cold and not be able to run away with him tonight.”

  “Why?”

  “Because things have changed. The loan shark caught wind of our plan and now wants to make the exchange in person. It seems that he’s interested in more than just money.” He ran a hard, calloused finger over her arm. “You’re making my brother careless, my dear. If he had been paying attention, then he’d know exactly what was happening, and what he needed to do. But no, my brother has gotten soft, and it’s up to me to remind him of who he really is.”

  “Go to hell.” Ari jerked her arm away.

  “I’m already there, honey.”

  She narrowed her gaze. “Why did you really offer to do the exchange tonight?”

  “For his protection.”