by Ace Gray
“They make me feel like it’s happening all over again. Certain things do.”
“Like the shower?” His thumbs moved in small circles on my cheekbones.
“Yes.” I let out a loud, leaden sigh. “I had to scrub so hard to get his blood off, Nick.”
His arm slipped from my shoulder and he turned to look out the window. Jaime and Colton hung their heads. “It was hot and sticky. And everywhere. Even on my face and lips. The water ran red for what seemed like eternity.”
“Stop!” Nick’s agonized plea rang out in the car. Jaime and Colton jumped. “Please, stop.”
“You asked me to help you understand.” My voice went raspy as I worked to keep tears from falling. “I feel like I’m falling to pieces. I’m trying to fight it but I can’t. I don’t even know where to start. I’m supposed to be stronger than this.”
I turned from him and gazed out the window, seeing nothing. Not my reflection, not the city, not the yellow, honking cabs. I barely recognized the gray stone of Vesper when it appeared outside my window.
“You’re strong,” he said simply.
“I’m not. And no one is more frustrated about it than me.”
I shoved at the door, forgetting completely about the traffic, wanting only to be inside, buried in work, and away from this uncomfortable and downright painful admission. Nick’s big strong hands wrapped around my arms before I could step outside.
“What are you doing?” I demanded, my head whipping back toward his.
“Escorting you. You said you needed me.”
Guilt washed over me, he had a 9 o’clock meeting, and I was interfering with his schedule. I was being whiney and selfish, two things I never was. Now that made my stomach churn.
“It’s fine. I don’t want to inconvenience you.”
There was that F-word again. And my fake smile that had started to accompany it. I disgusted myself.
“Calm down. It’s no inconvenience.”
8:47a.m. flashed on the dash clock as I stepped from the car. Even without a trip inside he was likely to be late. I wanted to object, but a part of me—the part still on edge—couldn’t stand to lose his touch.
I let him escort me. His fingers traced the small triangle of skin showing above the high waist of my skirt. The hypnotic movement helped me relax as I click-clacked all the way to the elevator and then as we rode to my office on the twenty-second floor. Gemma scampered to greet me the second I stepped out into my personal lobby.
“Kate. How are you? Everything alright? Anything you need from me?” Her familiar British accent was like a warm blanket and the worry of a friend was etched across her face.
“I’ll be okay, Gemma, thank you. All I need is the usual.” I smiled.
“Of course.” Her eyes warmed. “Messages are on your desk, your calendar is up to date, and your nine o’clock is here.” She beamed as she motioned toward us.
My brow crinkled as I looked around. Nick and Jaime were the only others in the room. My gaze shifted back to Gemma.
“Mr. Bryant is your 9 a.m.,” she clarified. “Your next appointment is a noon lunch with Laura.”
God, he can be an asshat.
I pursed my lips and waved him into my office. My jaw clenched as he nonchalantly blew past me. I pulled the door shut behind us and caught his smirk as I gestured for him to sit down.
“You find this all very funny, don’t you?” I narrowed my gaze but couldn’t stifle a matching smirk.
The crooked smile I loved best pulled across his face. “This part, yes. None of that before.” He sunk down into the chair opposite my desk and extended his arms along the rests.
“I’m sorry about earlier. I shouldn’t have made you feel like you needed to stay.” I hauled my bag onto the desk.
“I don’t need to stay. I want to. Always.” There was a twinkle in his eye as he templed his fingers together in front of his chest, leaving his elbows resting on the arms of the chair. “Besides, we have business.”
“What do you mean?” My CEO facade fell into place as I zeroed in on Vesper.
“As you know, my business last week in Hong Kong was related to some of my tech ventures. I met with an existing distributor and also looked into a new manufacturing facility. I currently have two different chips that will meet your specifications. They’re both able to support the programming you’re interested in. A third, even cheaper, is a possibility down the road.”
He had my attention now, my inner turmoil evaporated.
This was strictly business.
“What are the costs associated with each?”
We dove head first into business, both of us talking animatedly about the potential of his technology. I handed over some of the device submissions I’d reviewed. His frown formed quickly, marring his fine face. It was reassuring that we were on the same page and that I wasn’t being a stubborn tyrant.
“I like Brennan, but sometimes I want to overhaul the entire department,” I said with a sigh.
“Give them time. Removing Todd wasn’t without side effects. The secret nature of our working relationship is also problematic. I wish I could put my guy on it. He’d nail it down for you in a week.”
“That would be amazing.” I sighed.
“That brings up the major problem.”
“There’s a major problem?” Heat rose in my cheeks.
“I don’t, as a rule, provide my technology to outside companies. I consider it proprietary information. And that information is a bonus I throw in when I’m trying to convince someone to sell.”
“So you’re trying to figure out how to work with Vesper?”
“Exactly. I don’t mind sharing with you, Kate, but I’d be a fool if I didn’t look into the ramifications for my present, and future, endeavors.”
I nodded, completely in agreement.
“That’s the part that’ll take additional time to figure out, particularly since we’re technically competitors.” There was very little emotion in his voice.
“Fair enough.” I leaned back in the chair and covered my eyes with the crook of my arm.
Vesper was running out of time, and I was running out of patience. If I was going to have my new tech device ready to ship January fifth, something needed to move forward. I respected Nick and his reasons, but my temper still had my ears turning pink and my jaw clenching. Lost in thought, we sat in silence until his suit slid against crisp leather and his perfectly polished shoes clipped across my floor.
“Did you pick this office for the view?” Nick deftly changed the subject as he passed behind me.
“What?” I answered, pushing the edge from my voice as I turned to find him leaning against the windows. “Yes. Why?”
“It’s beautiful,” he said with a honeyed purr that curled my toes.
My heart thudded because he was staring unabashedly at me rather than the skyline. I had to agree, his sculpted body and the city I loved were, in fact, beautiful. Particularly together. Our familiar crackle surged through the room and my skin goose bumped along the trail of his heated gaze.
“I’d like very much if you would stand and I could sit.”
I nodded, brushing against him as I rose and shuffled back toward the mahogany of my desk. He sat and twisted, pinning me up against the edge. He rested his hands on my hips, careful to miss the scrapes hidden beneath my sleek white skirt. I lit up under his touch and my bones bowed toward him.
“Knowing we had business to attend to, and that I had to hold out this morning, killed me. You understand how difficult that is for me, don’t you?” He arched an eyebrow. “I only ever keep my hands off you to prove you’re more than just a piece of meat to me. Everywhere I go, everything I do, reminds me of some moment with you. In my office, when I close my eyes, I picture you, naked, on my desk.” A positively wicked, mischievous smile spread across his f
ace. “I think you need a similar memory of me.”
Yes, please.
I grinned from ear to ear. I wanted him so very, very much. That would make me feel more myself. Guaranteed.
“I think I’d enjoy that.” I matched his seductive purr.
“Turn around.”
He casually reclined in my chair and asked me to turn my back to him and the windows. I did as I was told, only hearing my heart thump in my chest and my heels shuffling across the floor. Nick held me there with his knees against the outside of mine and hands still firm against my hips. He kept me perfectly still for far too long. My skin vibrated with need, and I breathed deep to keep my knees from disintegrating.
I whimpered when his hands began to wander my body and pressed to flatten me to the desktop. The shirt I was wearing had a full split up to my shoulder blades allowing the sheer sides to fall away, exposing my bare back.
The sound of the thick, gold zipper slowly parting accompanied the slightest release of pressure around my thighs as his deft fingers ruffled the fabric. My breath caught when my skirt fell away beneath me. Nick was treated to a visual feast; I’d foregone underwear this morning.
His fingers explored my cheeks, tracing shapes as I lay out along the desk before him. I moaned as he fondled me and gasped when he placed himself squarely between my legs. He pushed them wide to scoot further between my thighs; his nose tickled against my skin. I moaned when two long fingers pushed inside me. He followed those fingers with a nip on my ass as he pressed deep. I mewled against the hard wood below my lips while my legs quivered, barely balanced on stilettos.
It took everything I had to stay standing as his expert, firm thrusts found a rhythm, a perfect tempo that reminded me of the roll of his hips, exquisite all on its own. He pressed repeatedly into me, fully focused on his movements. My skin heated wherever his gaze lingered.
Nick’s fingers swirled inside me. I was losing myself to his skills and, as always, he could sense my orgasm. At the last moment, he pulled his fingers out leaving me trembling and gasping for air, but decidedly unsatisfied. He audibly licked his lips and everything in me clenched, arousal dripping down my leg.
”Jesus, Sweets.” The tip of his tongue tickled as he licked along my thigh.
Every hair on my body stood on end when he returned to subtle caresses. I had to bite my lip to keep from begging for a quick, stinging smack. The tender, teasing touch was going to drive me insane. Whips-and-paddles kink had nothing on slow-and-steady sweet the way Nicholas Bryant did it. I couldn’t handle it anymore and jerked against his hand, having every intention of standing, turning, and taking over. But he stood and pressed harder between my shoulder blades, pinning me to the desk all the more forcefully.
The papers we’d looked at moments ago stuck to my chest. He leaned over and the weight of his body pressed against me, the buttons of his shirt dug into my back. He rubbed his nose along my neck and into my hair as he purred. His hand played across my ribs and down my backside.
When he stood up, I whimpered. The sound made him chuckle, and he reassured me with a squeeze to my unmarked hip. Slowly, and ever so torturously, his fingers skated down one of my long legs. Gently, he took my ankle in his hand and coaxed my knee up onto the desk.
“Baby,” I groaned when he started down my other leg as tenderly as the first.
Nick took that ankle too, helping me to tuck my leg up under my chest. I thought of how I looked to him, a bare ball, ready and waiting— no, aching—for him.
After what had to be an eternity, the merciful sound of his fly opening filled my ears. It wasn’t possible to be more turned on, and the quiver of my body was shouting as much at Nick. He squeezed on my hips.
“Calm down, Sweets.” His mouth appeared inches from my ear and I desperately tried to follow his command.
He stayed draped over me as his cock pressed against my wet slit. His pants and shirt crinkled against me as he sank in. I could feel each and every inch of him over my body and each and every inch of his erection inside.
The only thing that pulled my attention from pleasure was the edge of the desk digging into my shins. It was going to bruise but I was glad—the slight pain was the only thing that kept me grounded. I only got relief when he stood and his weight shifted off me. My body didn’t mind either way.
Nick raked his fingers down my back, first over fabric, then skin. Him pulling out slowly then pushing back in made me groan and ball my fists.
“Nick,” I moaned.
I would never tire of the feel of him, the delectable way he stretched me. He pulled out completely and let his shaft rest against the curve of my ass. My heart was pounding and ragged breaths shook my frame.
“Please.”
I couldn’t help the mangled plea, or that my fists opened, and I clawed my fingers down my desk. I didn’t care if I gouged the finish.
I was relieved when he pressed back into me. His breath caught and the noise that followed was throaty, making me quiver. He stilled deep inside while my sex hungrily gripped at him. Despite my greedy tugs, there was no deeper spot for him to sink. He tried anyway. His hand curled tighter into my flesh, pulling me back onto him. His tie tickled my backside.
“I’ll beg,” I whined.
“No need, Sweets.” It sounded like he spoke through gritted teeth.
The punishing roll of his hips began, more intense and edgier than usual. The extra sizzle between us was the only thing making it bearable.
Nick found a rigorous pace that had him slamming against the end of me hard and fast. I mindlessly moaned over and over. The intercom beeped once, and caught in the moment, Nick swatted the phone off the desk effectively ripping the cord from the handset. If Gemma hadn’t suspected what we were up to before she probably knew now.
I couldn’t focus much energy on caring; he was rattling me to the core. I fed off his fervor, feeling alive and in love.
We were building together. His pace faltered ever so slightly and his hand gracelessly slid from my hip. My body trembled and made it even harder for him to regain his grip and keep up steady thrusts.
“Kate, come,” he groaned.
His command and one quick slap pushed me over the edge. I came, screaming loudly against my desk, my fingers flexing against the wood again. I realized he was right there too when he shot into me and prolonged the quakes overtaking my body.
“Jesus,” he rasped as he emptied into me.
I was grateful I wasn’t standing; my knees would have buckled. Nick pulled out and the heat of his cum trickled down my leg. I gulped and rolled slightly to my side, sagging against the wood. He collapsed into my desk chair. I caught him readjusting and smoothing his hair out of the corner of my eye. Mine fluttered shut, my entire being replete.
After a few deep breaths his hands came to my thighs. When I convinced my eyes to open I watched Nick reach for his pocket square. He rubbed the soft, paisley silk against me as he tenderly cleaned between my thighs. For some reason that made me smile.
“There’s my girl.”
Utterly satisfied, I couldn’t muster more than my signature MMMmmm in response.
Nick kissed the small of my back before collecting my skirt from the floor. Carefully he unfolded me and scandalously kissed my ass. I giggled, unable to manage much more. He helped me back into my skirt, yet I couldn’t bring myself to stand as he settled back into the chair.
“Even in that skirt you’re quite a sight from this angle,” Nick said, making me flush. Finally, I mustered the strength to push up from the desk. I turned toward him as he crooked his finger into the high waist of my skirt he’d just zipped back into place. He used his hold to pull me into his lap. “You’ll think of me here now, right?”
“Trying to force my hand,” I teased.
“Pretty sure there was nothing forced about that.” He kissed my neck.
I snuggled into him and wrapped my arms around his neck just before his phone rang. He snaked between us to pull it out of his pocket, answering without moving me. His hand traced the triangle of skin showing on my back.
For a little while I only paid attention to the sounds reverberating through his chest, not even conscious of his words. My eyes aimlessly roved the room landing on my desk phone that lay dying. Gemma had buzzed me but the busted plastic had suffered the consequences. I went to roll off his lap but he held me tightly. When I pushed against his roped chest a second time, he let go.
I smirked as I scooped up the black carcass of the phone. Before leaving the office, I checked my reflection to see if anything else was destroyed. The small smile I wore lingered on my lips as I walked out to Gemma’s desk and set the broken phone down.
“Could you please get IT to send up a new phone? This one broke.” Gemma blushed furiously, almost the color of her fiery red hair.
“Of course,” she stammered. “Ummm, Kate?” She was still trying to find her footing.
“Yes, Gem?” I did my best to hide my satisfied smug smirk.
“Laura is ahead of schedule. She said she’d meet you here.”
“Thank you.” I turned, almost smacking into Nick who had appeared behind me.
“I have to go.” He wove his arms around my waist and pulled me close as I rested my hands on his forearms. “You’re coming home tonight, right?”
“You mean to your place?”
“You still think of it as my place?”
“Yes. I don’t pay a mortgage so my clothes can live in Chelsea.” I rolled my eyes.
Nick made a playful face then rushed in to kiss me deeply. I let my hands wander up his arms and into his perfect hair. I pulled him closer forgetting the staff in the lobby. We were on full display when the elevator softly dinged behind me. I was lucky it was Laura clearing her throat as she stepped off.
“You two should get a room,” she joked.
“We have one. We’re in it.” I broke away from our kiss but I was still staring into Nick’s sparkling gaze.
