by C. J. Thomas
What Nash was doing to me now wasn’t supposed to be as delicious as it was. It was like ice cream on a hot, summer day. And I couldn’t get enough.
“Who were you with this afternoon?” He flicked the tails of the flogger against my swollen mound.
The pain in my wrists was easily forgotten. With the way he was drilling into me tonight, with his ginormous manhood, all I could think about was how in the world was I able to take him as deep as he was going.
Nash was a large man and nothing was cut short when it came to the tool he had between his legs. And for that, I loved the man enough to trust him with the information I held close to my heart.
“I was with Kendra.” My fingers wrapped around the rope as I shifted more of my weight off my feet. “I wasn’t avoiding you.” The moment I said it, I knew I shouldn’t have. Because I was avoiding him. I’d deliberately not answered his calls or texts.
This entire situation was so fucked up.
Hell, it wasn’t just him I wanted to avoid. I wanted to stay away from everyone after what happened to me.
Being kidnapped really shook me up and I still didn’t know what I was going to do to get the money back by the deadline Mr. Lopez set for me.
It was all too much, and Nash needed to make me forget that this was real—that my life, and the decisions I made, depended on me living.
He slapped the flogger tails hard across my backside.
My body lurched forward, soaking up the intense sting as my fingers tightened on the rope hanging me from the ceiling.
Nash shoved his finger inside my slickness.
My sex throbbed with desperate need.
“You’re so wet, Alex.” He flicked his tongue over my peaked rosebud. “Does my power and control turn you on?” He wiggled his finger inside me.
I’d tell him anything he wanted.
Even if it wasn’t true.
Just to make sure I was confident Nash was going to finish what he started. Because there was no way I could not let him finish—he was right, I was so wet I might drown. “Yes,” I moaned, my head thrown back in ecstasy.
He circled me one time before coming to stand in front of me.
My eyes lifted off the ground and raked over his muscles, marveling at how they glistened in the soft glow of a dim light above.
He looked amazing.
So hot and strong, and if Mr. Lopez didn’t kill me thirty days from now, looking at Nash like he was tonight surely would.
“Where’s the money?” He fisted my hair and tugged my head back again.
I closed my eyes and breathed.
His lips grazed over mine as he curled a finger inside me.
My body purred.
I’d never been so turned on in my entire life.
He twisted his wrist and managed to make room for a second finger. His thick, hard knuckles hit a ball of nerves and set me on fire.
My hips grinded on his hand, needing him to push me over the edge and send me out of this world.
He pressed my clit with his thumb and worked his hand into a frenzy.
Primal sounds came out of my mouth and my eyes rolled to the back of my head I was so close.
And just when I was nearing the edge I wouldn’t be able to come back from, he pulled his hand away.
I was hot.
And despite his raging hard on, he was cold.
That was how it was when Nash was in his zone. He’d twist me until I begged for mercy.
I looked him in the eye. “I don’t have it.”
He turned around, showed me his back, and hung his head.
Every muscle in Nash’s body was perfectly defined. I’d never seen a man as cut as he was. It was like he was sculpted from stone. “Nash.” I didn’t care that I didn’t call him Master. What I had to tell him was between me and Nash. It had nothing to do with our silly sex games we played behind closed doors. This other shit was serious.
He turned his head to the side but kept his gaze down.
“What were you and Wes talking about when I arrived?”
His fists clenched, making his muscles swell to twice the size of what they were just a moment ago. When he turned to face me, I gasped for air.
There was a storm in his eyes and I hated how he wouldn’t open up and trust me enough to let me help him ride it out.
He circled around me.
I hung there, vulnerable and open, wondering what he would do to me next.
His hot, sweaty skin brushed against mine as he hovered over me.
My skin prickled when his fingers trailed over it with feather-light strokes that caused my sex to clench. Inch-by-agonizing-inch, he traced my back, following my spine down until he slid his finger between my ass cheeks.
I froze and held my breath when he stopped on the tight muscle of my asshole.
“You’re not being a good girl, Alex.” He nipped my ear, pinching my peaked nipple tight between his fingers.
“I’m like you.” I turned my head in his direction. “I’d like to know the answers to my own questions.”
He pressed his finger tip into my ass.
I tested the strength of the rope that bound me and held me in place.
“If you’re not careful, I might just decide to fuck you here.” His voice was dark and deep. The deepest I’d ever heard it.
My heart thrashed inside my ears and I started to hyperventilate. “I’ll tell you anything you want to hear.” I freaked. There was no way I could have his length take me there.
I didn’t want it.
Not with him.
Not with anyone.
His foot stomped to the floor and he positioned himself behind me.
“Nash!” My body thrashed, but the knots only tightened. “Don’t you dare!”
Without warning, he pierced me with his cock. The sudden burning sensation sent shock waves across my heated skin.
He slid out.
Then lunged back in, penetrating me hard.
I was thankful he didn’t take me where he threatened to, because when it came to Nash, anything was possible. This time, I’d lucked out. But I knew that next time I might not be so lucky.
I clenched around him and gritted my teeth, massaging out his aggression one stroke at a time.
He thrust hard. “You can come whenever you like.”
The rope dug into my flesh where I was bound, and I rode the wave of pleasure until I finally exploded around him.
Nash detonated inside me and let out a monstrous roar that shook the walls.
He stayed inside me, hanging on to my hips until I felt his heat stop throbbing before slipping out of me. The moment he untied me, I collapsed to the floor, crying, “Kendra got rid of it. I don’t have it.”
Nash stared at me like I was telling him a lie.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.” Tears spilled from my eyes. “Kendra has it. Talk to her.”
He shoved his hand through his hair and sighed.
The truth was even hard for me to swallow. And hearing myself brought my feet back down to earth. Suddenly, it was as if I finally realized how fucked I actually was.
“Clean yourself up.” He tossed me a towel. “We’re done for tonight.”
69
Nash
THAT ASSHOLE HAD BEEN WAITING for me the entire time.
Wes was leaning against the upstairs railing when I caught his stare.
“Where are you taking me?” Alex squeezed my hand.
I quickened my pace and led her through the nightclub, feeling Wes still watching my every move from above.
By the way he stared, I could only hope that the conversation we’d started earlier wasn’t over. Because it was in both our interests to start trusting each other with what we knew about that damn money.
This shit needed to end. Tonight.
“You’re going home.” I pulled Alex into my side.
“Just like that?” Her eyes were cast to the ground as if making sure she wouldn’t trip. “Y
ou invite me here just to fuck me, then tell me I need to leave right after?”
I stopped and tipped her head back so that I could see those gorgeous eyes of hers. I didn’t like it any more than she did. But it had to be done. “Tonight, it’s like that. Yes.”
The tip of her tongue slid across her bottom lip.
I wanted us to stay.
We could dance.
We could talk.
And we could have a damn good time, but none of that was possible.
Not until I knew that she would be safe and we could get the money off the streets and get her out of harm’s way. I could feel the pressure mounting and knew that we didn’t have much time.
“Now, c’mon.” I tugged on her hand and continued walking.
Her heels clacked behind me. The doorman saw us coming and opened the door. Together, we stepped outside and let the silence of the night fill our ears.
There was a cool breeze that reflected the somber silence that hung between us.
I was not happy with her.
What she did was foolish and stupid and placed me between two monsters whom I did not wish to fight.
At least I knew who Kendra was. I had that going for me. And maybe I’d even be able to take the money back myself.
But it was just another hoop we had to leap through. If the women knew the implications of what they were up against, we wouldn’t be where we were tonight.
“That’s for me, isn’t it?”
My driver put on the brakes and rolled up next to the curb.
“Go home.” I opened the back door and put her inside. “Stay there. Lock the door and don’t let anyone inside.”
“Nash, you’re scaring me.”
My chest was tight and my voice was weak. “This will all be over soon.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I need to talk with Wes.”
She nodded and I bent over and kissed her.
She held on, wrapping her arms around my neck, holding on for dear life. It took everything I had to peel her fingers off my shoulders and push her away.
I didn’t want to leave her alone.
Not with what happened to her once already.
But I saw no other option. It was something that had to be done.
I shut the door and watched the SUV drive away into the night.
My eyes closed and I rubbed my face inside the palm of my hands and said a quick prayer. My eyes opened and my head lifted when I felt a hand come to rest on my shoulder.
I turned to find Wes.
“I didn’t realize you two were friends.”
“Does it make any difference?”
“A collar is a big deal.”
He knew the significance of the collar better than anybody else who was a member of Mint.
“She was kidnapped today.” I hid my hands inside my slacks and turned to face him. I needed to see the look on his face when I started to drop secrets. “Please tell me you didn’t have anything to do with that.”
His gaze was unwavering. “I give you my word, it wasn’t me.”
We stared into each other’s eyes, sizing the other up, seeking cold, honest, truth.
“But I have a feeling I might know who it was.”
My brows raised.
“C’mon.” He clamped my neck between his fingers. “Let’s talk somewhere private.”
We stepped back inside the club and I followed Wes back upstairs where we took a seat in the booth that overlooked everything.
Wes’s eyes were focused on the dancefloor below. “Nash, everything you said earlier, it’s all true.”
“So who are these assholes?”
“The ones who kidnapped your woman,” he turned to look me dead in the eye, “are associates of Blake Stone.”
I rubbed my forehead.
“Are you familiar with his involvement in the Colombian cartel?”
“Yeah, I kept up with all that.”
“It’s their money.”
Down below, a couple danced like they were making love.
“It was all there. Waiting to be found.”
I turned to look at Wes. “On my set.”
He nodded once. “It’s just dumb luck that you happened to be next in line.” He paused. “Any other director using the same studio—” he turned his attention back below, “—who knows what might have happened.”
“But what about Alex?” My brows knitted together. “I mean, she found it right around the corner from Mojito.”
“Coincidence.” Wes narrowed his eyes.
“Coincidence?” Was he fucking serious?
“After Blake Stone was arrested, I got wind of the money. I knew it was there and that this supposed rumor about the cash that went missing wasn’t made up by the tabloids. It was true. Every last bit of it.”
“So how did it end up a block from your restaurant?”
“It was important I got to it first so that no one would get hurt.”
“Then why Dex Ross? How did he come in to all this?”
“He owed me a favor. After what Stone did to Kami and me, if anything happened,” his fist clenched on top of the table, “I didn’t care if Dex got caught getting it out of the studio.”
He stared at me for a minute before we both turned our focus on the club below. This was all so heavy. Wes was telling the truth, and for once, it was all starting to make complete sense.
“She’s in serious trouble,” my voice was soft.
Wes turned to face me. “Nash.” He slid his elbows across the table and leaned in. “You know I hate to even say it.” He paused.
My heart quickened as I waited for whatever it was he was about to say.
“But they’ll kill her if she doesn’t give it up.”
My heart came to a screeching halt.
I refused for my mind to go there.
“Unless—”
“Unless, what?”
“Unless you tell me where it is now.”
70
Alex
NASH WOULDN’T STOP CALLING.
I stared at my phone but couldn’t find the courage to pick it up.
He’d done what he could do—send me home.
There was nothing else he could do to help. Not the way I saw it, at least. I was on my own.
This was my mess and it was important that I swept it up myself. The last thing I wanted was for anyone else to get dragged down in the muck only to get hurt. Or even worse, have their lives threatened.
Including Nash’s.
Just as he’d promised to do everything to protect me, I’d do the same for him. Where he’d failed, I would succeed. There was nothing that would destroy me more right now than to see something happen to Nash.
Even now, just thinking about it, a sharp pain stabbed my gut and twisted my stomach.
I flopped over, landed on my back, and stared up at the ceiling. My arm flung over my face as I groaned, tossing and turning, battling the guilt I felt for bringing everyone I cared about down with me.
It was all my fault and I didn’t know what to do.
When I got home, I’d logged into my account and saw that my loans and debt had been wiped clean. The money was there, just waiting to get cleared. I still didn’t fully understand how Kendra was able to deposit so much cash without raising any suspicion, but she was the lawyer who knew what strings to pull to make it all look legit. I didn’t care to know the details of it all.
The money was gone and so was my debt.
That was all that should have mattered.
Being debt free should be cause for celebration.
But it wasn’t.
I was hiding out and scared for my life.
And instead of having a tremendous weight lifted off my shoulders, my legs were shaky and on the edge of collapse from the mounting pressure, coping with the realities of my new reality show—In the Life of Alex Grace.
My phone buzzed and started ringing. I flipped onto my stomach and snatched the rectang
ular device between my fingers to see if it was Nash again.
Kendra.
The phone continued ringing and I just stared at the screen, watching her name and face light up as it vibrated inside my hand. I debated whether or not I even wanted to talk with her, seeing how I already wasn’t in the mood to talk to Nash.
More than anything, I wanted to be alone.
My thoughts were all over the place, as were my emotions.
I smiled when thinking how Nash made me feel.
And I wanted to cry when I thought about everything else.
I needed to come up with a plan. Something worthwhile. A loan perhaps. Or a quick way to earn money. Anything to reset my life and get me back on what mattered most—my internship, my friendship with Kendra, school, my plans to make movies, and most importantly, my relationship with Nash.
No matter how hard it was to admit, I was really falling for him. I knew that I couldn’t give him everything I knew he needed until I cleared my head, so getting this problem behind me was top priority to getting my life back on track.
The phone continued ringing.
I was still pissed at her. But even more so, I was pissed with myself for making so many terrible decisions. Choices that had real consequences. I had been looking for shortcuts when I should have stayed the course.
But I couldn’t keep Kendra away. She was all I had, next only to Nash.
I swiped the accept button and answered. “Please tell me you have the money?”
“So, you’ll find this interesting.” Her voice was cool and calm, as always.
My teeth grinded in the back of my mouth. I hated how nonchalant she sounded. I didn’t have time for her bullshit. “What is it?” My words were clipped.
“I was digging through some of the firm’s old files today and found a folder with a very familiar name on it.”
“Is that right?”
“That’s right.”
“Care to share the name?”
“Wesley Reid.” The name slithered off her tongue.
I rolled to my side and propped myself up on an elbow. “I’m listening.”
“It just so happens that he’s one of our clients.”
“Okay, so?”
“So, as I was fingering through his files, it led me to another folder that caught my eye.”
“Kendra.” I sighed. “Please just get on with it already.”
