“What are you doing?” Kai asked softly, her eyes searching Finley’s.
Finley didn’t answer. She just kissed Kai again, her mouth moving even more sensually over Kai’s, her lips demanding.
“Are you trying to top me?” Kai asked, sounding more amused than annoyed.
“Are you letting me?”
“I think if I have to let you, then you’re really not,” Kai said, her voice low but definitely showing the effects of Finley’s efforts.
“Then I guess I need to make sure I do it right,” Finley said, sliding her body over Kai’s, slowly and very deliberately, allowing her breasts to brush Kai’s body.
Kai gave a low moan in the back of her throat, pulling at Finley, pressing her closer. Finley moaned at the feeling of Kai’s hands and the knowledge that she was indeed exciting Kai. However, Kai’s hands, being so damned sensual as they moved over her skin, were making Finley want them on her more, and she knew that would only serve to get her off again. She wanted to get Kai off. Lowering her body to Kai’s slowly, she reached down with one hand to take Kai’s arm and move it above Kai’s head. Kai grinned at the gesture as she repeated it with her other arm.
“Now what are you doing?” Kai asked huskily.
“I want this to be about you,” Finley said, lowering her body down over Kai’s, the friction of their skin still exciting her. “So leave your hands there,” she added, giving Kai a pointed look.
“Mmm…” Kai moaned at the sensations Finley was causing in her body, but also at the command she’d just received—that excited her more.
Finley lowered her head, taking a hard nipple in her mouth and sucking at it. She felt Kai jump in response, her breath coming out in a ragged gasp. She put her fingers to Kai’s other nipple, circling it until Kai was actually straining against her in an effort to get her to touch it. As her fingers brushed over the hard nub, Kai groaned. Lowering her head again, Finley began to suck at the nipple. Before long Kai was breathing heavily and moaning her name over and over. Finley found that her body was responding to Kai’s cries as if the woman were actually touching her.
She started to move down Kai’s body and felt her tense in response. Glancing up, she could see that Kai was looking down at her, her dark eyes burning with desire. Finley grinned, reveling in the power. She shifted that last foot, her mouth hovering over Kai, her hands sliding back up Kai’s body to reclaim hard nipples. She looked up at Kai again, could see that she was beyond excited. Lowering her head, she moved her mouth over Kai, not pressing too close, just enough that Kai could feel it.
“God…” Kai moaned, pressing her head back against the pillows, which she was now grasping tightly. “Please…” she said softly when Finley just continued her light exploration.
When she used her tongue lightly on Kai, Finley felt an immediate reaction as Kai pressed her hips upward, trying to grind against her. She slid her tongue over Kai slowly and thoroughly and Kai shuddered, but then Finley stopped again, looking up at her.
“Jesus, Fin…” Kai pleaded. “Please…”
“What do you want, Kai?” Finley asked, staring up into Kai’s eyes as she hovered over her.
Kai’s eyes connected with hers, and there was something completely animalistic in them.
“I want you to fuck me,” Kai said, her voice ragged.
Finley had to control her body’s response to such a blatantly erotic request. She slid her body up Kai’s, her skin in full contact, pushing Kai’s legs wider apart as she moved between them, pressing her pelvis against Kai’s in the simulation of the act. Within moments Kai was groaning and gasping loudly in her release and that sent Finley’s body over the edge as she came with her.
As they lay together afterward, Finley’s body still covering Kai’s, they both breathed heavily. Kai’s hands came down to hold Finley against her, not wanting to lose contact, as her body still shuddered and quivered from the powerful orgasm.
“That was…” Kai said, her voice trailing off as she shook her head. “Incredible.”
Finley kissed Kai’s shoulder, where her head had been resting as she tried to recover from her own orgasm. She looked down at Kai and smiled. “Yes, it was.”
Kai saw the satisfied look in Finley’s eyes and knew it was because Finley had topped her and actually driven her absolutely crazy in doing so. Kai was more than willing to let her have that victory—it had definitely been mind-blowing. She shook her head as she thought about it again.
“What?” Finley asked.
“Only one other woman’s ever been able to pull that off.”
“Really?” Finley said, grinning. “Just one, huh?”
Kai nodded.
“Good to know.” Finley looked extremely proud of herself.
“Don’t get too cocky,” Kai said, grinning. “I can’t stand that she can do that to me, and I haven’t truly topped you yet, so…” She let her voice trail off as her eyes sparkled.
Finley licked her lips, feeling a thrill go through her. “Duly noted.”
“So,” Kai said, shifting to settle Finley on her side again and turning over to face her. “When’s your next shift?”
“I’m actually off for a couple of days.”
“Oh.” Kai looked surprised. “So, any big plans?”
Finley looked back at her, her grin seductive. “I’d love to spend it in bed with you…” She widened her eyes. “But I imagine you have a life.”
Kai chuckled. “Well, I do have a couple of things to do today, since I really haven’t left the house since I got home from the hospital. But if you want to come along that’d be okay with me too.”
Finley smiled. “Only if you promise we can do this again at some point…”
“Like I’m going to be able to resist.” Kai grinned, sliding her hand up Finley’s body from her hip to her face, staring down into Finley’s eyes.
“I’m hoping you can’t,” Finley said honestly.
“Not likely,” Kai said, leaning in to kiss Finley, her hand still cupping her face.
Finley responded instantly, pressing closer.
“Mmm…” Kai moaned softly. “Jesus, you’re like an addiction already…”
“Good, then it’s not just me that feels that way,” Finley said, putting her hand to Kai’s waist and stroking her skin.
Kai smiled. “I definitely think we can check the box for ‘sexual compatibility.’”
“For sure,” Finley said, grinning.
They got up a few minutes later and took a shower, which resulted in more lovemaking, but eventually they were able to get dressed. Finley put on the clothes she’d worn the night before.
“If I’m going to spend any more time over here, I’m going to need to go by my place,” she noted.
“Not a problem,” Kai said as she made them an omelet for breakfast. “Where do you live?”
“Right down the street from Cedars.”
Kai grinned. “That’s convenient.”
“Saves me having to own a car,” Finley said, smiling at Cassiana as she walked into the kitchen.
“How’d you get here last night?” Kai asked, leaning over to kiss Cassiana on the forehead.
“Uber,” Finley said. “They know me now.”
Kai chuckled, shaking her head. “I can’t imagine not having a car.”
“KaiMarou has two,” Cassiana put in as she pulled orange juice out of the refrigerator.
“You have two cars?” Finley asked, looking at Kai.
“Yeah,” Kai said, tossing pieces of ham to the dogs, who sat nearby watching her avidly, hoping for table scraps. “One for me, one for the boys,” she said, nodding to them.
Finley grinned. “The dogs have their own vehicle?”
“You have to see her car to understand,” Cassiana said, moving to sit at the kitchen table.
“Hmmm,” Finley said, nodding. “I see.” Then she looked over at Cassiana. “Why do you call your sister KaiMarou?” She’d been wondering that when Kai was in the h
ospital, but hadn’t wanted to be too nosy.
Kai and Cassiana exchanged a grin.
“’Cause she’s a brat,” Kai said.
“’Cause that’s her name,” Cassiana said.
“It’s my first and middle names jammed together,” Kai explained.
“Your middle name is Marou?” Finley asked, thinking it was an interesting one.
“It’s our father’s name,” Kai said. “Normally it’s an honor given only to the first male child, but since my mother was told she couldn’t have any more kids, she gave me the honor. Much to our father’s chagrin,” she added, giving Cassiana a wry grin.
Finley nodded, already really not liking Kai and Cassiana’s father very much. “So you call her KaiMarou…” she said, trying to follow the logic.
“Because when we started emailing it’s how her name displayed on the email.”
“I forgot a space between them,” Kai said, sliding the omelet onto a plate and cutting it in half, then handing one plate and a fork to Finley.
“So now…” Finley said.
“Now I constantly sound like a Pokémon character,” Kai said, smiling at her sister.
Cassiana grinned, looking wholly unrepentant.
Half an hour later, Finley understood exactly what Cassiana had meant about why the dogs had to have their own vehicle. She was stunned when she saw Kai’s Mercedes—the sleek green sports car was gorgeous, and whereas at first Finley thought it didn’t fit Kai, she realized it really did in a way. When Kai walked around to put her bag in the trunk, Finley watched her standing there wearing a caramel-brown leather jacket with an open Army green shirt over a black silk tank top, her black hair hanging loosely halfway to her waist—the car very definitely fit the sleek, beautiful woman standing behind it.
“Wow, this is really beautiful,” Finley said, sliding her hand over the car’s hood.
“Thanks,” Kai said, smiling.
When they got inside Kai hooked up her iPhone and music flowed from the speakers. She immediately turned it down a bit and grimaced. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Finley said, tuning in to the music. The song was one she didn’t recognize. She glanced at the display on the phone and saw that it was Rush.
“What song is this?” she asked.
“‘High Water,’” Kai said, smiling as she put her sunglasses on and backed out of the garage.
Finley watched as she tapped on the steering wheel to the beat of the music. That was when she noticed the silver rings Kai was wearing. She’d seen them before at The Club and again at the studio, not able to miss the way they flashed as she talked and gestured. She hadn’t been wearing them at the hospital or the night before. When Kai shifted gears to get on the freeway, Finley reached out to touch the rings. Kai glanced over at her, grinning and obligingly holding her hand out.
The ring she wore on her thumb was large, silver, and very detailed. “This isn’t a regular ring,” Finley said, touching it.
Kai grinned. “No, it used to be an antique spoon. Remi gave me that for helping her train for that last fight. Well, that and a fairly nice paycheck.”
“I see…” Finley said. “Should I ask how much you make?” she asked, her eyes widening slightly.
“You can. If you want to know.”
“Okay, let’s say I was going to hire you to train me—what would it cost?”
“For how long?”
“Let’s say ten sessions.”
“How long would the sessions be? Hour, two?”
“Let’s say two.”
Kai’s lips curled. “I’m not sure you’d survive two hours with me. Let’s say one,” she said with a wink.
“Okay, so ten one-hour sessions…”
“Thirty-five hundred,” Kai said simply.
Finley looked shocked. “Dollars?”
Kai laughed, nodding.
“You make three hundred and fifty dollars an hour?”
Kai inclined her head. “Sometimes more, depending.”
“On?”
“Well, if I have to travel, like I did with Remi. Or if someone’s a particularly big pain in the ass,” she added with a wry smile.
Finley laughed. “Jesus, I think I’m in the wrong business.”
“No,” Kai said, shaking her head. “You are in the exact right business. You are incredible at what you do.”
Finley smiled softly. “I’m glad you think so.”
Kai narrowed her eyes slightly, surprised that Finley obviously wasn’t convinced of her own abilities.
Finley glanced at the next band on Kai’s index finger, an Annapolis class ring. She touched it reverently, smiling. The next one was silver with an uneven channel of red, orange, and gold running around it, very rugged-looking.
“What is this one?”
“Oh, that’s an Irish designer Quinn got me into. Her name is Sheila Fleet—she does a lot of nature-related pieces.” Kai grinned. “This one represents lava.”
“It’s really cool.”
“Thanks.”
Finley pointed to Kai’s left hand. “Okay, and those two?”
Kai took them both off, handing them to Finley so she could look at them closely.
One was another class ring, silver, with United States Marines engraved on it. It had an eagle on one side and the year on the other. Finley touched the eagle. “This represents your rank, right?”
Kai nodded. “Yeah.”
The other ring was also silver, with a smooth channel in the middle in shades of the rainbow.
“Is this Sheila Fleet too?” Finley asked.
“Yeah.”
Finley smiled. “It’s great.”
“I like it,” Kai said.
Finley handed the rings back as the song on the iPhone changed. Kai put the rings on even as she grimaced and rolled her eyes at the phone. Using the controls on the steering wheel, she changed the track.
“I swear to God, Memphis…” she muttered.
“What?”
Kai chuckled. “Memphis has a habit of stealing my phone and adding music to it randomly.”
Finley grinned. “She does?”
“Yeah, it’s her way of broadening our horizons. She does it to Remi way more often,” Kai added, grinning as she shook her head ruefully. “I never know what’s going to show up on here.”
“Why do you think she does it?”
“I think it’s her way of letting people know she cares about them.”
Finley nodded. “Yeah, I think you’re right about that. She actually asked me for my phone once—I had no idea why.”
“Well, just know if she gets ahold of it, you’ll end up with music you’ve never heard of before.”
Finley chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
A few minutes later Kai pulled up to a bank, looking over at Finley. “I have an appointment here,” she said. “Do you want to wait or…?”
“Can I come in with you?” Finley didn’t want to intrude, but was curious.
Kai smiled. “Sure.”
Kai checked in with the receptionist, who stared adoringly up at her the entire time. When Kai went to sit down next to Finley, Finley couldn’t help but comment. “Did you miss the big eyes she was giving you?”
Kai’s lips curled in a smile. “She’s cute, but a touch too young.”
“I see,” Finley said, grinning.
“Besides,” Kai said, reaching over to take Finley’s hand, bringing it up to her lips and kissing the back of it, “I’ve already got someone occupying my time.”
Before Finley could comment further, Kai was called up. She stood, still holding Finley’s hand. Finley got up and went in with her, watching the meeting with interest.
Kai was meeting with the bank to take out a loan of $100,000 for an investment. She had all the paperwork she needed, as well as her statement from the same bank indicating that she had $100,000 of her own money to add to the investment. Finley found she was extremely impressed with how astute a businesswoman K
ai was. She was no “jarhead” Marine, that was for sure. Not that Finley had thought that anyway—the woman was far too smart for that.
Back in the car, Finley glanced over at Kai. The bank had, of course, happily approved the loan. It had taken a matter of twenty minutes to get the cashier’s check.
“So, can I ask what you’re investing in?” Finley asked.
“The studio with Dakota, Jazmine, Natalia, and Raine,” Kai said as she pulled back onto the road.
“Really? To do what?”
“Looking at putting a training gym downstairs. I’m hoping I can get Remi to come in on it with me, if nothing else for her notoriety and her MMA skills.”
“Wow.” Finley was impressed. “You certainly don’t mess around.”
Kai shook her head. “Not when it comes to money, no, I don’t.”
The stereo was on again, and once again a song came on that Finley didn’t recognize. “Is this one of yours or one of Memphis’?”
“This is Memphis’, but I actually like it.”
Finley listened. The song was “Medieval Warfare” by a band called Grimes. The chorus was interesting—it actually asked, “Can you kill a man with your hands?”
“So can you?” Finley asked, looking over at Kai.
“Can I what?”
“Can you kill a man with your hands?” Finley said, still very curious about the Marine side of Kai Temple.
Kai looked back at her for a long moment, then nodded. “Yeah, I can, but I prefer guns—less messy,” she added with a grin.
Finley nodded. “I see. Have you ever had to do that?”
“What? Kill a man with my hands?” Kai’s expression flickered with amusement. “No, thankfully. I’ve gotten into some fairly nasty fights, and bloody ones too, but never had to go that far.”
Finley nodded, not sure why she was so fascinated by this side of Kai, but she was, undeniably so. “How did you get into training the dogs in the military?” she asked, remembering what Kai had said about working with dogs in the Marines.
“Well, it was actually by accident,” Kai said, smiling. “I’d always had a thing for animals, a ‘do no harm’ kind of thing. When we were on patrol through a town one time, we were confronted by a pack of dogs. Apparently the Afghanis were teaching them to attack and kill American soldiers.”
Quid Pro Quo Page 13
