by MINK
She wrinkles her button nose. “Why is she always so good at that? And cooking? And being kind? And oh my God, that tiramisu.” She smiles, her gaze straying down my bare chest again and again. She can’t seem to stop looking, and I don’t want her to.
My phone buzzes in my pocket again, and this time I realize that perhaps I need Carter’s help more than I’d anticipated. After all, I intended to fuck all Pandora’s secrets out of her, but instead, I fingered her until she came and, right this second, I’d love to do it all over again. In fact, I’d love a taste of her right now.
When it comes to her, I’m weak.
“Why don’t you relax in my bed while I go get us a second helping of tiramisu?”
She drags her toe across the floor, her hands tangling in front of her. “Why do you have to tempt me with food, darn it.” Her Southern accent is decidedly adorable. How have I lived without this woman for so long?
“So we’re in agreement then?”
She rolls her eyes. “I can’t say no to that tiramisu and you know it.”
I walk to her and kiss her forehead. “Get comfortable. I’ll be right back.”
“It’s because I’m just too darn good at seduction,” she grumbles under her breath.
“Pardon?” I can’t help my wolfish grin.
“Nothing,” she sing-songs, then turns and dives onto my bed.
I get a compelling view of her ass and am hard pressed not to join her, but I promised tiramisu, and I need to see what Carter has uncovered.
“Perfect,” I say as she settles into my covers. Fuck, I need to be there with her.
Walking from the room verges on painful, but I manage it and pull out my phone to speed dial Carter. He picks up as I pad down the stairs.
“What’ve you got for me?”
He whistles, which means he’s hit the jackpot. “I found it, boss. And you’re never going to believe what that key goes to.”
17
Pandora
My eyes slowly open when I feel a kiss on my bare shoulder where my shirt has fallen off. His clothes are all so baggy on me. I oddly enjoy wearing them. I roll over on the bed in order to face him.
“I fell asleep.” I yawn.
“You did. I came back to find you and Shah cuddled up. You were both out cold.” I try to sit up to look for the adorable cat. He makes a good napping partner.
“Where did he go?” Another yawn leaves me. I fall back onto the soft bed. I don’t know how I’m ever going to return to the futon I have in my place. Gaines’s bed is so comfortable; it’s like sleeping on a cloud. Not to mention all the food and the too-sexy-for-my-own-good man that keeps giving me orgasms. I mean, no one could resist this temptation.
“He went to eat.”
“My tiramisu.” I throw my leg over his body. His hand comes to the side of my thigh and slips up under his shirt.
“I put it back in the refrigerator. Would you like me to go get it?” As much as I love that dessert I’m enjoying Gaines’s hand on me more.
“Later.” I stretch, pushing myself more into him. “Have you been watching me sleep?”
“I was until you rolled over.”
Something feels different. I’m not sure what it is.
He reaches for my necklace. “There’s history to this.” It’s not a question.
I don’t say anything at first, but his continued stare lets me know that I’ll have to give him something.
“Yes. My grandma gave it to me.” I decide to go with the simple truth.
He examines the key, turning it over.
“You never take it off.” Again, it’s not a question. At least it doesn't sound like one.
I’m not sure where he’s going with this. I pull on the chain so he drops the key, then I tuck it back into my shirt. Well, his shirt.
I push on his shoulder so he rolls to his back, then I climb on top of him, straddling him. I need to distract him from wherever that line of questioning was going. When my sex presses into his warm skin, I remember I don’t have any panties on. My breath catches with how fast I become turned on. He always does this to me.
“I’m not taking it off.” I don’t want to talk about the necklace anymore. I also don’t care for his sudden interest in it. I want to forget about everything else for right now. This has been the first time since I lost my grandma that grief hasn’t threatened to consume me. I want to be selfish in this moment and bask in this newfound happiness he’s given me.
“Do you take other things off?” He smirks and puts his hands behind his head. I reach for the shirt and pull it over my head to let him know I’m willing to part with everything else I’m wearing.
“Fuck, you’re breathtaking.” He starts to reach for me, but I stop him.
“It’s my turn.” I never get a chance to explore him. He always distracts me with pleasure before I get the chance.
He reaches over his head and grabs on to the headboard. His muscles flex, making the wood creak. I trace my fingers down his hard chest to his abs. The man really is a work of art. It’s not shocking the bidding went so high on him.
“I shouldn't do this.” I push myself further down his body, gasping when my sex grinds against his cock.
“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”
I grab the top of his boxer briefs and lick my lips. The thought of giving him the same kind of pleasure he gave me spurs me on.
“I said I shouldn't. Not that I didn't want to.” I want to taste him. Making him needy the same way he does to me. More than anything, I want to leave a mark on him. For him to remember me when my time here comes to an end. We may not have forever, but we have right now. I plan to make the most of it.
I give his briefs a tug and watch as his cock springs out. My eyes go wide as I stare at him. I felt him before. I knew he was big, but seeing it is something else altogether. This math does not add up in my brain. There is no way he’ll ever fit inside of me. This only further proves that he’s not meant to be mine.
“Pandora.” I look up at him. His jaw is set in a hard line. The headboard gives another loud creak. The sound excites me. It’s like he’s trying his hardest to maintain control. I have to close my legs to mitigate the throb between my thighs. My need for him is evident by the wetness that already soaks me. My body doesn’t care that he might not fit. It plans to try its hardest to get him inside of me. Even if it's an inch or two. That might be enough. “Wrap your hand around me,” he orders. My nipples tighten. I enjoy him telling me what to do.
I lick my lips and put my hand around the base of his cock. It’s softer than I thought it would be. “Like this?” I stroke him up and down. He lets go of the headboard and sits up. His hands wrap around mine.
“Harder.” He helps me stroke him. A small bead of cum wells on the head of his thick cock. I lean down and lick it off.
“I like it.” I look up at him as I take more of him into my mouth. I wiggle, trying to give myself some kind of friction to help the throb between my legs. He keeps helping me stroke him as I swallow another few inches of him. More cum leaks into my mouth, making me suck harder. I want more. I hear him say my name, but I keep going, unable to stop myself. I want to make him come like he did me.
“Pandora.” He grabs me. His cock slips out of my mouth before he pins me to the mattress. His eyes are wild, his breathing is labored.
“I wasn't done.” I lick my lips, still tasting him there.
“No, we’re far from done.” He knees my legs apart. The fear of him fitting inside of me is long gone. I need this. I don’t care if we’re not supposed to be together right now. I want him. The head of his cock slides along my sex, brushing my clit.
I dig my nails into his back as my hips lift, begging him to enter me. I give in to my desire. Everything has been decided already. I know without a doubt that this is all part of it. He was meant to take my innocence. He’s a step on the journey to fulfilling my destiny. One that I need to take, I reason with myself.
“Say you’re mine.” He pushes the head of his cock inside me. It slips in so easily.
Maybe I should be embarrassed with how wet I am. I’m not. He did this to me. I try to lift my hips more, but he doesn’t let me.
He keeps me pinned to the bed, totally under his control. “Say it,” he orders.
“I’m yours.” For tonight there is only us. I’ll worry about destiny tomorrow.
18
Gaines
Those words on her lips are a dose of ecstasy through my veins. I push farther inside, feeling her soft, slick walls squeezing me in a perfect vise.
Biting back a groan, I ease deeper. Slowly. She grips my biceps, her eyes closed tight.
“Look at me.” My voice is low, harsh. Raw, just like me in this moment.
She obeys, her eyes open. “Don’t stop,” she breathes.
I’m savoring every second, every sensation. This treasure is far dearer than anything I’ve ever found, and I won’t squander it.
“Gaines, please.” Her eyes are hazed with lust, and my muscles quake from the sheer effort it’s taking me not to pound into her.
I pull back, then thrust all the way inside. Her cry of pleasure races across my skin as I take her mouth, sinking my tongue inside as I let her adjust. She moves her hips, asking for more.
I’ve exercised every last bit of my control, and when she arches for me, I give in. My body moves, the animal part of my brain taking over as I claim the beautiful woman beneath me. She isn’t just anyone. She’s mine, and I want her to feel me with every step she takes.
“I’ve waited for you for so long.” I give her all of me, holding nothing back.
She wraps her arms around my neck and presses her mouth to mine again. I start a smooth rhythm, and she moves her hips with me, meeting me. She’s hesitant at first, but then whatever inhibitions she was holding on to fall away, and she gives herself fully, moaning into my mouth as I surge inside her tight cunt.
I kiss her until I can’t breathe, can’t think. Then I trail my mouth down her throat and taste her sweat-slicked skin.
Her fingers tangle in my hair, and she pulls, the little flashes of pain sending my need higher, making my strokes harder.
She moans when I lick a trail to her nipple, then suck it into my mouth.
Gripping her ass hard, I keep pushing inside her. I have to slow down, because if I don’t, I’ll spend inside her far too soon. But when I ease my pace and switch to the other nipple, she pulls my hair.
“More,” she moans.
“More?” I look up at her and flick her nipple with my tongue.
“Yes.”
“I’ll never deny you, Pandora. If you want anything from me, it’s yours. You only have to ask.” I speed up and bite down lightly on her hard nipple. Her body tenses, and when her legs start to shake, I know she’s close.
I return to her mouth and reach between us, my thumb glancing across her clit. She digs her nails into my shoulder, and I strum her again, loving the way she winds even tighter, her pleasure so close I can almost taste it.
Leaning back, I sit up and grip her hips. Staring down at her body, at the way she’s spread wide for me--I can’t go slow. I can’t stop. I surge inside her, watching her breasts bounce with each impact as she grips the sheets.
She’s a goddess of carnal lust, her head thrown back, her body arched. I intend to worship at her altar as often as she’ll let me.
I slide my thumb back to her wet clit and stroke it faster this time. Her body jolts, her movements becoming erratic. My cock grows even harder, my seed threatening. But I can’t have my release until she’s coming all over my cock. So I bite my lip and keep giving it to her the way she wants, the way that makes her pant and moan my name. Fuck, I never want her to stop.
But then her breath hitches, her body freezes up, and then the sexiest sound I will ever hear leaves her. A low, shaking moan, my name caught up in it. Her cunt squeezes me tighter, urging me to release right along with her. I don’t. I draw out her pleasure, fucking her as her legs shake and she comes apart. Her body is open to me, all its wonders on display, and I hope her heart is, too.
When she’s near the end, her panting breaths returning, I finally let go.
A gentleman would pull out. A gentleman would ask permission. Good thing I’m no gentleman.
With a deep thrust, I lean down and claim her lips again, then groan as my release spills inside her, my cock pulsing, shooting every bit of my cum into her tight cunt. Her orgasm seems to rise again, her body clenching as a new wave hits her.
She clings to me as I empty myself into her warmth.
When I finally come down again, I release her lips and gulp in the cool air. Words are on my lips--ones that will give away just how much this means to me. But if I say them, I’ll spook her. So I keep them tucked away. It doesn’t mean I don’t feel it. There’s a tether between us, a golden chain--much like the one around her neck--that links us. And if she doesn’t feel it yet, she will.
She lets out a huge whoosh of air as I wipe the sweat-slicked hair from her forehead, then drop a kiss there.
“I didn’t know it would feel like that.” She smiles, her lips puffy from my rough kisses.
I roll us over, my cock still at half mast inside her.
She yelps at the sudden movement, then settles on my chest, her chin propped so she can look into my eyes. “I’m going to be walking funny for a week.”
“Good.”
She smacks my chest, but she’s smiling all the same.
“And just a week?” I tsk at her. “You’re a treasure, Pandora. And I intend to polish you every time I get the chance.”
“Polish me?” She arches a brow.
“Mmm-hmm.” I run my fingers through her hair. “Spit shine you.”
She laughs. “I can’t tell if that’s hot or nasty.”
“I can make it whatever you want.” I stroke down her back, her skin soft and warm. “I was serious when I told you I’d do anything for you. Give you anything you want. All you have to do is ask.”
Her fingers stray to the key at her throat, and her forehead furrows.
“What’s wrong?”
Her gaze returns to me. “Um, nothing.”
“Come on.” I lift her and wince when my cock hits the cool air.
“Where are we going?” She blinks sleepily.
“You’re going to the bathroom, and I’m going to head downstairs for snacks.”
“Snacks?” Her eyes brighten.
“Mrs. Pettyford will have something tasty prepared. I guarantee it.”
She grins and gets on her tiptoes.
I lean down in answer and take her lips in a soft kiss. When I pull away, I stroke her cheek. “Fresh clothes are in the closet. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“Okay. I’ll go, um.” She blushes. “I’ll go to the bathroom.”
Her pink cheeks get her another kiss. Then I back away from her and enter my closet. Once I hear the bathroom door close, I quickly go through the locks to enter my vault, then leave the door ajar and the light on.
Shah jumps onto the shelf beside me, his gaze decidedly perturbed.
“Look, if she wants the box, she can have it. I just hope she sticks around and asks me for it instead of taking it.”
He doesn’t say anything, but I feel judged all the same.
“It’s not a trap.” I pull on some pajama bottoms. “Or a test.” I hold up a finger. “It’s an opportunity. That’s all.”
He doesn’t seem convinced.
I stride out of the closet, Shah’s disappointed gaze on my back. As I head for the kitchen, I cast a glance at the bathroom and hope that my treasure realizes she’s worth more to me than anything I’ve ever had in my vault.
19
Pandora
The warm water feels good on my skin. I was sure Gaines was going to join me in the shower but he never does. I think I’m going to try to lure him into that giant tub of h
is. It’s bigger than my whole bathroom at home.
I grab one of the big fluffy towels as I step out. Everything is so fancy in this place. It’s as though I’m visiting a five-star resort. I guess anything would seem that way compared to my place.
“This is warm.” I grab another towel to see if it’s warm, too. It is. It’s magical. I’m sure Mrs. Pettyford has something to do with this heated towel. I didn't know that was really a thing unless they were straight out of a dryer. I’m lucky if I have heat in my apartment some nights, never mind a heated towel.
I’m starting to get used to this place, which isn’t necessarily a good thing. How am I ever going to go back to my tiny studio over the laundromat? I’m the one that was supposed to be seducing Gaines, but I’m pretty sure he seduced me instead.
I’m all in. I can’t leave this castle to go back to the laundromat. That would be crazy. There’s food--scratch that, there’s amazing food--a swimming pool, heated towels, and a freaking cute kitty cat that I’m pretty sure is in love with me. Oh, there’s also the fact that I think I’m in love with Gaines. I’m not ready to admit that out loud, but that may have something to do with me wanting to stay.
None of this is going according to plan. Things never do for me.
“Meow.” Shah pokes his sleek little head into the bathroom to look at me before darting right back out. I follow him. He leads me towards the closet. I need to get dressed anyway. After, I’ll go to find Gaines and those snacks he promised me. Yeah, he really does know how to seduce me. I can’t resist Mrs. Pettyford’s food and he knows it.
“Wow.” I suck in a breath as I take in the giant closet. I could just move in here based on the size of it. What catches my eyes first is that all of the clothes we’d gotten earlier today are lining the shelves here. Which could only mean one thing: he wants me to stay. Just the thought makes me swoony.
I find a pair of the silk pink panties and slip them on first before I put on a pair of joggers. There are so many tops to choose from, but I find myself over on what looks to be Gaines’s side of the closet. I grab a shirt that says University of Oxford across it. I remember reading an article about him that said he’d gone there. I smile as I slide it on over my head.
