Bishop's Pawn

by Suzanne Halliday

  He searched her face for clues. She’d been gone a long time. After Rhiann took over and swept her off to discuss wardrobes and god only knows what else he’d had a hard time not charging after her.

  “So,” she asked with a snide smile that was a mirror-image of something Liam did. “Did you two kiss and make up?”

  “Sis,” Liam chortled. “It’s all good as long as you realize I’m girlfriend numero uno.”

  Kelly looked to a grinning Rhiann and gave a long-suffering sigh. “My competition thinks he’s a comedian.”

  “Wait till Fantasy Football starts. We might as well book a cruise because these two enter some macho fugue state when the NFL fires up.”

  Liam didn’t deny it and added a detail that somehow wiggled right past Roman’s normally astute scrutiny.

  “You’ll note please, that our wedding is scheduled between playoff seasons.”

  “Sadly, he isn’t kidding,” Rhi muttered.

  He and Kelly laughed.

  “So what happens now?” she asked the group.

  Nobody pretended not to know what she referred to.

  Liam took the lead. “When you’re ready, there are some legalities you need to handle. My lawyers will handle the heavy lifting, but you’re in charge of the details. My hulking friend here,” he said with a thumb jerked in his direction, “made something of a big deal out of me telling you that from time to time. So there you have it. You’re in charge.”

  “What kind of details?” she asked.

  Roman took the opportunity to draw her close and pulled Kelly onto his lap. “Mostly identity stuff. And your brother found a way to handle the Oklahoma property in a way that protects you and Matty from local encroachment or challenge.”

  “How?”

  “It’s too complicated to discuss right now. We’ll sit down with Liam’s legal team and go over everything.”

  “She needs a phone,” Rhiann interjected. “And a driver. You’re on that, right Roman?”

  Kelly reacted to this comment with expected anxiety. He had about five seconds to clarify unless he wanted to get into a royal verbal skirmish with her later.

  “Non-negotiable,” he told her. “You and Matty will be assigned an assistant to handle logistics and security.”

  “What the fuck does that mean?” she immediately bit out. “Are you talking about a bodyguard?”

  She started to get up, but he held her around the waist to cut off an angry retreat.

  “Rhi?” he asked with a slight tinge of desperation.

  “Choose your battles, Kelly. This one is unwinnable, so it’s better not even to get started.”

  “I don’t understand,” Kelly griped.

  “You know I was kidnapped, right? People are crazy. What can I say? Before that harrowing experience, I thought an assistant was complete and utter bougie bullshit…until I didn’t. Almost getting killed has a way of making things simple. You’re in New York City. Let them do this, Kelly. It’s important, okay?”

  Kelly gave him such a malicious look he was tempted to put both hands over his privates in case she nut-punched him. He read her expression. She was sick and tired of him continuously getting his way. There wasn’t a lot he could do about that at the moment. Until she found her footing away from Oklahoma, he was in the driver’s seat.

  Roman knew the second she’d had enough. He was so damn proud of how she handled Liam and their first meeting, but he saw her starting to flag.

  “Matty’s birthday is next week.”

  He hated the small, frightened, emotionally exhausted tinge in her voice. “I’ll be needing some things.”

  “His birthday?” Liam hooted. “That’s fantastic. What do you need? I can get a moon bounce and rock climbing wall.”

  “No!” she cried. “No stuff. Just let me handle this. Roman?”

  He thought of the big shopping bag full of party crap that they’d hauled with them and Kelly’s sketch of a dinosaur cake she wanted to make and knew exactly what to do.

  “Dinner with the whole family or just cake and ice cream. You’re calling the shots, honey. What are you thinking?”

  She bit her lip and looked all sorts of conflicted. “I guess dinner would be nice. Matty will like that. But no presents,” she grumbled with a snarky glance in Liam’s direction.

  “Maybe just one?” Rhiann asked hopefully.

  Roman gently caressed Kelly’s back. She was done. He could sense it. Now wasn’t the time to push this particular issue.

  “Let’s leave this for another time, hmm?” He directed his attention to Liam. “As for tomorrow, nothing before lunch, okay? They’re still adjusting to the time change.”

  “No sweat,” he answered drily. “Legal will do what they’re told when they’re told.”

  His little lover continued to surprise him when she became the perfect hostess and said all the right things as Liam and Rhiann gathered their coats and strolled toward the elevator vestibule.

  They held hands as they walked along.

  “I’m glad we did this,” she told them. “Matty found the fight club detour quite amusing.”

  Liam groaned. “God, sorry about that.”

  There was more friendly banter, and then Kelly got in a parting shot. He very nearly fucked her brains out while pinning her to the wall when her ballsy inner bitch had the last word.

  Offering her hand, she fixed her older brother with a classic Kelly James sneer and said, “Nice meeting you. I think you’re a dick.”

  Rhiann burst out laughing, and Liam shook his sister’s hand with comical vigor. “I AM a dick! Thank god we got that out of the way straight off.”

  The elevator came and as their company started taking their leave Roman began laughing.

  “What’s so funny dickhead?” Liam’s asked with an arched brow sneer.

  He snorted, offered Kelly a wink and then gave Liam a healthy dose of cheeky snarkasm. “Ever use that fancy pool table you’ve got?”

  “Not really,” Liam replied.

  “He has a pool table? Kelly asked with a real laugh.

  “That he does,” Roman answered.

  “Aw, this is gonna be great,” Kelly chuckled.

  As the elevator doors whooshed shut, Liam said, “Why do I feel like I’m being set up for something?”

  He and Kelly laughed like hell and went arm in arm back to the apartment.

  The dinger went off, and she dashed to the massive industrial looking gas stove to open the oven door. The aroma of warm vanilla and cinnamon filled the air. She’d made one of Matty’s favorite things, monkey bread, and by the looks of the bubbling confection, had held her own in the modern kitchen.

  Wiping her hands on a towel, she grabbed the list on the counter and checked off the monkey bread. Next up—meatball chili, but she had a few hours before getting started.

  Laughter rang out from the living room. Happy laughter. She smiled.

  Matty’s birthday had been more than memorable. Roman put his personal spin on the occasion and arranged for Sam and Ginny to fly in for the big day. He even put them up in a fancy five-star hotel. For the past several days they’d all been running ragged around the city, taking in every imaginable tourist stop. Roman thought of everything, including an eye-opening, behind-the-scenes private tour of the dinosaur exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History. The boys, including Sam, enjoyed the day-long nerd adventure while the ladies tagged along and feigned enthusiasm.

  To Kelly, if you’ve seen one stack of dinosaur bones, you’ve seen them all.

  A particular highlight found her, Ginny and Rhiann experiencing the deep indulgence of a VIP spa day at the Mandarin Oriental. All in all, she was exhausted and happier than she’d ever been.

  Their week together was coming to an end. She’d be sad to see her friends go but she had something extra cool to look forward to.

  Roman was taking her on an actual date. For Valentine’s Day! And she had a sexy black lace dress for the occasion, courtesy of Rhiann,
plus a pair of shoes she was secretly practicing walking in.

  Today, though, they were doing nothing except hanging out, much to Matty’s delight. He’d grown so much in the last few weeks. Ever since that fateful moment when he stepped forward and challenged a big stranger in their midst, her sweet Matty was changing. Right before her excited eyes, he became what she always hoped for. Just a normal kid.

  “Need any help?” a deep voice asked from the doorway.

  She turned toward the sound with a ready smile. Roman. She sighed. If the man got any sexier, she was going to need an intervention because her one constant thought morning, noon, and night was making love with the man.

  They went through an embarrassing number of condoms and talked about other forms of birth control. Because they didn’t limit their sexy times to just the bedroom, that made the condom procedure a challenge at times.

  “What did you have in mind?” she purred.

  He yanked her flush against him. Exactly what she expected when she turned the flame to simmer with her growls.

  “Five minutes in the pantry with the door shut.”

  She smirked and wagged her tongue. “Will there be fucking involved?”

  “Most definitely. A quickie though. No time for a full course meal.”

  She studied his face to see if he was serious. The glittering gleam from his eyes told her that yeah, he was serious.

  “What’s everybody doing?”

  She couldn’t believe that she was crazy enough to consider his raunchy suggestion, but she was.

  “They’ve set up camp in Matty’s room. Candyland followed by Connect Four. It’s a tournament I think. And unless I miss my guess, Sam is headed for a short nap. Bet you’re glad now that we put a recliner in his room.”

  She chuckled and smacked his chest. “Best story time equipment ever invented!”

  “All right little madam. Stop stalling. Anything need to be turned off in here?” he asked with a sharp glance at the stove.

  She was dancing toward the pantry with her hands flapping in the air. “Safety first? We’re good, fancy man. Now you stop stalling and get your sexy ass in there.” She’d stopped, grabbed the pantry’s door knob, and was waving him on.

  “Yes, Ma’am,” he snickered as he slid by.

  She took one last look around, didn’t see or hear anyone, and quietly pulled the door shut.

  When she turned around Roman’s pants were down around his ankles, and he was casually handling his impressively rigid cock.

  “My, my,” she purred. “You’re a very big boy, aren’t you?”

  “You’ve proven you can handle it,” he drawled.

  She tapped a nail on her chin and eyed him up with undisguised hunger. “How do you see this going?”

  “Well, it’s your lucky day, kitten. Rhi thought I’d lost my mind for putting a carpet in here. I hate cold wood floors on my delicate feet.”

  “Let me guess,” she cooed as she came toward him. “All fours?”

  His wicked leer got her engine running. “You know me so well.”

  Eager to get his lovely fat cock inside her, she ripped off her stretchy yoga pants, shimmied like a stripper out of a scrap from the naughty lingerie Rhiann loaded her up with, and dropped to the carpet.

  “Face down and that sexy ass up. Spread your thighs. A little more,” he growled after a moment.

  She heard the sound of a condom wrapper being ripped open. A second later his fingers were exploring her opening. His pleased growl made her pussy quiver. She was ready and becoming wetter and more aroused by the moment. She loved when it was like this. No foreplay. Just animal lust. Pure, nasty, fucking.

  He moved into position and spread her ass apart as his hard shaft began to penetrate her. Almost immediately she started to pant. Just thinking about him inside her was enough to make the juices flow and her body respond to the promise of an orgasm.

  The sensation as he stretched her and his fat cock pushed deeper was amazing. They both groaned at the same time when he was fully seated.

  He shifted and pushed her one knee out. A gush of arousal greeted the head of his beautiful cock as the slight change in angle sent him just that much deeper. Sweet tingles crawled slowly along her nerves.

  “Give me your hands,” he demanded in a harsh, guttural growl.

  Right away she started melting down. He knew she got an extra thrill out of having her hands restrained.

  Crossing her wrists low on her back, he grabbed them and held tight. His grip and the control it gave him served as an anchor as he got serious about the fucking.

  With her face on the carpet, she bucked into him and rolled her ass. The circular movement made his cock feel enormous. Holding tight to her wrists, he pulled back and almost out of her and then slammed home with a violent thrust. She came immediately.

  Her leg shook. She shoved a fist in her mouth as the climax took her under. She was barely finished when he bent down and bit her shoulder. “Count it down, kitten. A dozen should do it.”

  Oh god. He was killing her. And she loved it.

  “Twelve,” she grunted.

  “Hard or easy, baby?”

  “Hard. Please, Roman.”

  His chuckle had a dirty vibe. “Yes, Ma’am.”

  He pounded into her as she counted down with each mind-emptying stroke. By the count of eight, she was almost incoherent. He slapped her ass. “Count kitten. I want you to know when I come.”

  Three quick, brutal thrusts sent her spiraling.

  She was gasping for air as Roman paused, caressed her ass with one hand and squeezed her wrists with the other.

  “How many left?”

  Unf. She struggled to answer. “F-four.”

  He grunted. Two hypnotically slow strokes followed. She whimpered when his cock swelled, and he yanked on her wrists. She arched as much as possible and went with him as he came.

  When he pulled out a minute or so later, he bent and kissed her ass. She loved this part too. Roman enjoyed this position. So did she. He said he liked watching her ass when he fucked her. There wasn’t a lot of doubt in Kelly’s mind that one day he’d be claiming a different sort of virginity.

  He dealt with the condom and helped her up. She got quite a thrill when he knelt in front of her to help put on the ridiculously skimpy panties.

  “Let me say again how much I like this.” He leaned in and dropped a wet kiss real low and breathed her in.

  During their spa adventure, she let Rhiann persuade her to give waxing a try. Ginny thought the whole thing hilarious. She would have done it too except she declared that her downstairs situation was currently in tiptop shape.

  Refusing even to consider one of those Brazilian numbers where every hair was ripped out, she opted for something called a sweetheart trim. When it was over her out-of-control garden was a delightfully neat and pretty hedge with the suggestion of some heart shaped lady-scaping clearly visible. Roman lost his shit the first time he saw it. Since then he’d taken to licking her pussy every chance he got.

  With a cheeky smirk, she answered. “Well, once you explained how much careful trimming and man-mowing goes into your uh, presentation,” she silkily teased, “it seemed the least I could do.”

  She quickly pulled on her stretch pants and suggested he hurry the hell up and do the same. When they cracked the door a minute later and peeked their heads out, she breathed a sigh of relief to find they’d pulled off some pantry hanky panky while there were people around.

  Dashing into the kitchen, she washed her hands and made a small production out of consulting her list. Roman went straight to the refrigerator, pulled out a bottle of that disgusting Yoohoo shit he loved so much and guzzled the whole container.

  That’s what they were still doing a good minute later when Matty came busting in.

  “Hey!” he hollered. Boyish excitement was bouncing off him. “Can we have a puppy? Gigi says we need a dog.”

  “Oh she does, does she?” Kelly drawled at the exac
t second Ginny appeared.

  “I’m so sorry, you two,” she half-apologized, and half laughed. “I wasn’t paying attention. You know how it is.”

  Everyone but Matty nodded in agreement.

  “He mentioned a puppy, said Roman was on board, and before I could think it through I said it was a great idea.”

  “What’s a great idea?” a new voice asked.

  She turned toward the other end of the kitchen in time to see Rhiann and a casually dressed Liam striding toward them.

  She didn’t say it out loud, but her expression certainly revealed her thoughts. This place is like Grand Central Station.

  Roman chuckled, kissed her forehead and went to welcome the rest of the family. For someone who spent her whole life in solitary confinement, this near-constant ebb and flow of person-to-person contact proved a challenge. She was getting better at it though, and had even softened a bit toward Liam.

  Not long after their arrival in the city, Adam Ward finally died. It was a non-event. She didn’t feel a thing, and if Liam did, he kept it to himself.

  While their interactions were politely pleasant and at times oddly close, they were still dancing around each other. Matty, on the other hand, got sucked right into having men around. The one and only time things got obviously weird was when Liam presented Matty with a small gift bag containing two DVDs.

  She’d been so proud of his big boy reaction. Politely accepting the gift with the appropriate thanks, he then handed the bag off to her and informed Liam that, “Kiki doesn’t let me watch TV without…um.”

  “Permission,” she explained.

  Liam looked horrified by his gaffe. Roman quickly explained that they were determined to raise the boy without an overdose of technology. Especially mindless TV watching.

  Since then, Liam went out of his way to interact with her on what she’d come to think of as the parenting portion of the program. He was genuinely curious to learn how she’d managed when Matty was a baby and asked smart, open-minded questions about her parenting philosophy.

  She assumed this was because he and Rhiann wanted to start a family. The whole clueless husband-to-be thing was adorable and cute.