by Tess Oliver
My eyes drifted shut as he massaged the lotion in between the folds of my pussy. “Do you like that, baby?”
“Yes,” I said on a long, whispery sigh.
Then his liquid coated fingers slid down underneath me. His fingers trailed along the crack of my ass and into the tight hole. I shifted my hips up to accommodate his finger. He impaled my ass as his mouth cover my breast. With his tongue, he drew teasing circles around my taut nipple as he pushed his finger into my anus.
“Touch yourself, baby.” His words sounded deep and gritty.
I looked up at him.
“You can never say no, baby, right? Prove it to me. I want you to show me that you’ll do anything I ask.”
I moved slowly at first, slightly embarrassed about the idea of touching myself in front of him. My hand reached down to my pussy. He gazed down at me as I touched myself. Having him watch me was far more erotic than I could have imagined. In a few minutes, I was lost in the delirium of physical arousal as he shoved his finger in my ass and I massaged my clit.
Without removing his finger he gently turned me onto my side. As I pulled my hand from between my legs, he placed it back on my pussy. He scooted down behind me and kissed my neck and my shoulders. His breath grew more ragged, and I could tell something had changed.
He leaned down to my ear. “I want all of you, Jade.” I sucked in a breath as he removed his finger and pressed the tip of his cock against me. “Anything, darlin’?” He pushed the tip in. I clenched at first, but then he trailed more luxurious kisses along my neck making me relax. “It’s only because I want you so bad, baby.” He pushed in farther. “Keep touching yourself. Make yourself come, darlin’. I want to hear that cry of ecstasy coming from those perfect lips.”
I did as he asked and soon found myself moving against his cock as he pushed deeper inside of me. My mind was in a haze. It felt as if every cell in my body was being stimulated. I tightened my legs around my hand, and he slid in deeper, as if he would pierce right through me. It was a delicious pain that I might not have enjoyed if it hadn’t been Colt. My heart was behind my words. I would never deny him anything. I just wanted him with me, connected in any way possible. Even this. I brought myself to the edge and as he pushed deeper, I came in trembling waves. I cried out as he finished by pushing himself inside of me. His fingers gripped my hips and he held me against him. A deep, long groan of satisfaction rolled up from his chest.
We melted together in a hot heap as our breathing returned to normal. Every part of me ached with sweet delight. The feeling only intensified as he wrapped his big arms around me and held me tightly against his chest. He kissed the back of my shoulder.
“My beautiful, willing Jade,” he said quietly. “I know you said you don’t want to be owned by any man, but just try and let someone take you from me. No fucking way I’m ever letting you go.”
With those words and within his protective embrace, I fell fast asleep.
Chapter 17
Colt
After the last drop when the jerk on the other end had pushed his gun against my head, I was less than anxious to meet up with their boat. Dark clouds colored the horizon a chalky gray, and the looming storm churned up the sea enough to even toss around our thirty foot trawler.
Their boat was an old yacht that had been converted into a much sleeker, faster version of its original self. We’d been delivering drugs to some wealthy creep who had connections to the gambling casinos down south. Even though we had no idea where the blow went after it left our hands, the quality and the price of the stuff seemed to indicate that it was going to rich people, people who spent their days trying to figure out how to get more thrills out of life. I, for one, didn’t care where it ended up as long as we got paid and as long as things went off without a hitch. Something told me that was no longer possible with the new man in charge.
His black shades were the first thing we saw as he and his two sidekicks climbed up the rope ladder. He had his shoulder holster strapped down tight under his coat.
Hunter moved closer to me. We had our guns tucked under our shirts, ready and loaded, in case this guy had a problem with the cargo or if he just went nuts in general. That seemed highly likely with the way he was grinning at us like the Joker from Batman.
“This motherfucker sure rubs me the wrong way,” Hunter muttered from the side of his mouth. This time Slade came down without being asked. Safety in numbers.
“Gentlemen,” he said as if we were all meeting for a friendly chat, “it looks like Mother Nature is going to be heavy handed today.” He swept his arm around at the ever darkening sky. “So, without further ado—” He yanked his gun out as if he was pulling out his wallet. He pointed it at me. “You know my policy. Until everything is counted and tested, I need a sacrificial lamb, and that’s you, Hollywood.”
My fists tightened but they would be no match for his gun. As badly as I wanted to pull mine, I didn’t like the idea of dying in a bloody gun battle at sea all over a shipment of coke. Especially when now I had someone waiting for me, someone who needed me. Someone who I needed just as badly.
He walked over and pressed the gun to my head. Red hot rage flickered in my brothers’ faces. I shot them a look of warning. This would be a bad fucking time for someone to lose their temper. And, if nothing else, Rincon was always consistent with the quality of the cargo.
We stayed at the stern while Hunter watched the water for other boats. Slade led the two men to the cargo hold to check the bundles for quantity and quality. My life was in Rincon’s hands at this point. Something told me the asshole with his gun to my head wouldn’t hesitate if his partners came up from the hold with bad news.
“Colt Stone,” he said, and I peered sideways at him. “Don’t look so shocked. It was easy to find out who owned this ugly fishing boat. I’ve been asking around about you. They call me Ace. Just to keep things balanced.”
“Why the fuck would you be asking around about me? And who the hell are you asking?”
“Don’t worry, I’ve been in this business long enough to know how to keep things discrete and smooth. You impress me as the kind of man who keeps his cool when shit is going down. I need someone like you. Those two clowns I’m traveling with are worthless. You can make a lot more money on the other side of this drop. I’ll see that you get a better cut.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so. I’m good on this side.”
A short, harsh laugh made the gun barrel bounce against my head. “See, that’s what I like about you, Stone. A bullet is just a few inches from your brain, but you didn’t even hesitate in telling me no. That’s guts.”
Hunter was keeping watch through his spyglass, but I knew his attention kept flicking our direction. This new addition to the job, where my life was on the line with every drop, seemed to be making him reconsider our line of work.
The gun moved against my temple as Ace reached into his pocket for something. He pulled out a piece of paper. “By the way, I was hanging out at a bar at the marina and saw this on the wall. The ten thousand caught my interest. The reward is just for information leading to the girl. Sounds like some easy money.” He unfolded it. It was a flyer with Jade’s picture offering a reward for finding her. I kept up a solid expression even though my heart was thumping hard against my ribs.
“What do you want from me?” I asked coolly.
“Just thought since you live near the marina, you might know the girl. You look like the type of guy who scores pretty well in the chick department.”
“Nope, don’t know her.”
“Just thought I’d ask. Figured it would be a quick ten thousand bucks.” He glanced down at Jade’s picture with a sick grin, and I wanted to rip it from his hands. “Shit, I’d like to hit that, eh? Bet she has a fine little cunt to go with that pretty face.”
My pulse was pounding in my head, and I briefly wondered how fast I could grab his gun and turn it on his ugly motherfucking face.
“I mean ten thousand bucks— she
must be quite a fuck.” His dry laugh startled me. He noticed my sudden tension. “Damn, maybe you’re not as steady and confident as I thought, Stone.” He looked at the picture and then at the side of my face. It had been impossible not to react to his comments. Now he sensed something was wrong.
After a long, intense minute, he returned the paper to his pocket. “Knew it was a long shot. But I did hear that you’ve been seen hanging around with a beautiful girl with white blonde hair. Thought maybe she was the girl on the flyer.”
“Told you, I don’t know her.”
Slade and the men returned carrying some of the bundles. I was relieved to see them.
“Are we good to go?” Ace asked.
“Yes, everything’s fine.”
Ace moved his face closer to mine before lowering his gun. “You will let me know if you change your mind about my offer.”
“Don’t hold your breath.”
He laughed. It was a harsh, grating sound. He put the gun back in the holster. I swallowed to relieve the dryness in my throat. It wasn’t the gun pointed at me that had caused it. It was the reality that Jade’s picture was everywhere. It was only a matter of time until some greedy asshole like the one standing on our deck caught sight of her. I needed to get home and tell Jade what was happening.
Chapter 18
Jade
Amy parked the car and we climbed out. The rich smell of coffee drifted around the parking lot. There were only a few people in the shop sitting around tables cradling steaming cups in their hands. Several coffee drinkers glanced up as we stepped inside. Two women, in particular, did a double take as if they knew Amy and me.
“Damn,” Amy whispered, “do I have dirt on my face or something?”
“So it’s not just me being paranoid?”
We got in line. I finally had a few dollars of spending money from tips, and I’d told Amy I wanted to buy her a coffee and muffin to repay her for being such a true friend.
“Oh good, they’ve got those little crumb cakes,” Amy said. “Love to dip those in my coffee.”
“How many do you want? My treat, remember? As long as we stay inside my five dollar budget.”
“One is plenty. In fact, we could share it.” She pulled out her phone. “A voicemail from Jack. I’ll bet he needs one of us to come in earlier.”
“I need to get a phone for myself. Someday.”
“Hey, I’ve got to take a whiz. Tell them I want extra whipped cream.” Amy pressed a button on her phone and walked away with it against her ear.
The girl behind the counter looked at me with round eyes, and I wondered what the heck was wrong this morning that was making people look at me as if I had horns growing from my head. Amy came scurrying out from the short hallway that led to the restrooms. She was holding a paper in her hand and looking as if a monster was chasing her from the bathroom.
“What the heck, Amy? Was there a spider in the stall or something?”
She grabbed my arm and spun me toward the door. “Forget the coffee. We need to get out of here.” She led me quickly to the door.
“O.K. now you’re freaking me out,” I said as we raced across the parking lot to her car.
“Yeah? Well be prepared to be properly freaked.” She shoved the paper into my hand. “Someone had pinned this to the bathroom door. Get in the car.”
I climbed in. My heart was pounding as I unfolded the paper. My picture was staring back at me with the words Missing typed in bold print across the top. There was a short description below it, but I was in no state of mind to read it. The word Reward and $10,000 were printed in red at the bottom of the flyer. I recognized the phone number. It was Ray’s cell phone.
“Shit. Shit. Shit.”
“Yep. Yep. Yep.” Amy backed the car out of the spot.
“And I thought people were seeing horns coming from my head. Turns out they were seeing dollar signs.”
“Ten thousand of them to be exact,” Amy said. She pulled the car out onto the road and headed back toward Colt’s house. “That’s from him, isn’t it? The guy you’re running from. Did you steal something from him?” she asked. I felt slightly hurt by the question, but it was a perfectly reasonable one considering the heft of the reward.
“Just his stupid ass pride. The last time we were together, he tried to strangle me. I think he’s just pissed that I walked out on him.”
“A wrecking ball to a big male ego. What an asshole.”
I sank back against the seat and fought back the tears that burned my eyes. “What am I going to do? I’m going to have to leave town.”
“And go where? All alone? You’re safer here with Colt. Then we can all look out for you.”
“Amy, I don’t want to put any of you in danger.”
“Danger? Shit, the Stone brothers would eat dynamite for breakfast if they packed it in a cereal box.” She shook her head. “No, you’re definitely safer with us.” She looked over and brushed a blonde hair off my face. “But I think we need to do some things to change your appearance.”
I looked at her. “What do you mean?”
“That silvery white hair is too unusual.” She closed an eye as if she was sizing me up for something. “With your blue eyes and suntanned skin, you’d make a beautiful brunette.”
“Brunette?”
“Yep, brunette.” She pulled into the parking lot of the drug store. “You’d better stay in the car while I buy the hair color.” She reached into her backseat and fished around before sitting back up with a black cap. “Put this on, Goldilocks. I’ll be right back.” Her phone buzzed. “Wait, that’s probably Jack. I forgot to listen to his voicemail. Hey, Jack, what’s up?”
I could hear his baritone voice coming through her phone, but I couldn’t make out the words. As he spoke, Amy looked at me. There was disappointment in her expression as she listened. She sighed dejectedly. “Yeah fine. All right. See you later.” She hung up and stared down at the phone to avoid looking at me. But I already knew.
“He doesn’t want me to work there anymore,” I said.
“Someone pinned a flyer up in the hallway. He doesn’t want any trouble. Big fucking coward. How the hell was he ever in the military?” She shoved her phone in my hand. “In case of emergency. The boys are number one, two and three. I’m sure you can guess which brother is number one, the big jerk.”
“Here’s the five I was going to use for the coffee.” I placed the money in her hand, and she hopped out of the car. I watched as she hurried across the lot and disappeared into the store.
The first tear broke free. I stared down at the phone in my hand. How badly I wanted to talk to Colt, to sit in his protective arms and have him tell me that he would keep me safe. In the back of my head, I’d known that Ray wasn’t going to just fade away and accept that he’d lost. But there was always that tiny sprig of hope that he would just forget me and move on. This wasn’t about wanting me back anymore. This was Ray refusing to admit defeat. He would rather part with a big chunk of money than admit that he’d lost me for good. My biggest worry was just how far the creep would go to get me back.
My finger swiped over the phone list. Colt was number three on speed dial. He and his brothers had gone out on their boat, and his mood had assured me it wasn’t for a pleasure trip. All three brothers had looked rather grim as they’d trudged out the door this morning.
As I held the phone, it buzzed in my hand. I nearly dropped it. It was Colt. I hesitated thinking it was wrong for me to answer a call meant for Amy, but just seeing his name on the screen made the tears roll down my cheeks. I rubbed my thumb over it and lifted it to my ear. “Hello.” My voice was small and quiet.
“Hey, Street, I need you to stay with Jade.”
“It’s not Stree— it’s not Amy.” I sobbed once and took a deep breath. “It’s me.”
“Jade? Are you with Amy?”
“Yeah, she went into the store. Colt, my picture is all over the place. Ray is offering a reward.”
“I know
.”
I sobbed again.
“Don’t cry, baby.” Of course, having him say that and call me baby at the same time made me cry harder. “You’re with me. I’m not going to let anything happen to you. You’ll have to give up your job for now.”
“That’s not a problem.” I sucked in a shuddering breath to get a grip on myself. “Someone put up the reward poster in Lazy Daze. Jack had to let me go.”
“We’re almost back at the dock now. Stay with Amy at our house. We’ll have to figure out a plan.”
I sniffled and nodded as if he might see me through the phone. The deep, confident sound of his voice had already lifted my spirits.
“No more tears. I’m going to take care of you, darlin’.”
“Hurry back.” I sniffled again. Amy came out of the store with the bag of hair dye.
She slid into the driver’s seat, and I handed her the phone. “The guys are on their way back to the dock. Colt said not to worry.”
“See, told you. I can tell you one thing, it’s always a damn big bonus to have the Stone brothers on your side.” She lifted a box from the bag. Coffee brown? Figured since we didn’t get to drink it, you could still wear it. We’ll make you look so good, Colt won’t be able to keep his hands off of you.” She laughed. “Oh wait, that’s already not a problem, is it?”
I reached over and hugged her. “God, Amy, I’ve never had a friend like you. Thank you.”
She squeezed me back. “I’m glad you came here, Jade.”
Chapter 19
Colt
Jade walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her head. She smiled and pulled the towel off. Her hair fell around her shoulders in dark brown strands. “What do you think?” she asked tentatively.
I pulled her into my arms just relieved to see her safe and in the house. “I think I have to start from the beginning with my new brunette girlfriend. And I’m looking fucking forward to it.”
