by D. L. Raver
Zolt cringed. “Ambien did bad things to me. One night, my brother found me sleepwalking outside naked with an open can of SpaghettiOs.
“Really?” I laughed a little as I imagined Zolt doing that. “SpaghettiOs?”
“Hey, it's a childhood thing. I loved them as a kid.”
I laughed again, and glanced at the clock, surprised to find it was mid-morning “Hey, you didn’t have a nightmare, did you?”
“Nope.” Zolt stroked my arm. “I think you chased them away. The memory of you always did. Having you with me seems to have kept them away altogether.”
“For real?” I knew I was grinning like a fool at him, but I couldn’t help myself. I felt triumphant. Having this small victory helped lighten my mood.
“You did. I can’t remember the last time I slept through the night without being slapped awake by nightmares.”
“Except you were, by mine,” I said sadly.
“Hey, that’s my fault. If I hadn’t told you—”
“Don’t.” I put two fingers over his lips. “I’m glad you told me. I needed to know. Zolt, you saved me. So, don’t you dare apologize.”
I hugged myself and rubbed my arms, trying to stop the shivers. When I thought about Marcus, what he’d planned to do, and what he’d probably done to Chris…
“Irelyn, I see the wheels spinning in your head. Try not to go there, baby.” He turned my face to his. “Marcus has to get past me, and that won’t happen. Come here.”
Zolt laid down and pulled me to him. I snuggled against him, loving the way it felt to be in his arms. I had never experienced this with a boyfriend. Sure, I’d made out with former boyfriends, and done some snuggling while watching movies, but not like this, naked and in the same bed after sleeping together in every sense.
I glanced at Zolt, and my heart skipped a beat. He was so fucking sexy with his day old stubble on his face and his sleep mussed, wavy hair. Holy hell, I wanted him.
“Irelyn, you’re looking at me as if you want to fuck me,” he said, his lips curving into a wicked grin. “Yesterday and last night not enough for you? My, but you are a greedy thing.”
“Uh.” I brought my hands to my face to cover my flushing cheeks.
“Don’t hide from me, Irelyn,” Zolt said and maneuvered his body and raging erection over me.
“Oh, my,” I said, wishing I’d have brushed my teeth.
“Oh, my, indeed.” His soft lips grazed my jaw, and then moved to my lips. He nipped at my bottom lip, and I opened my mouth, allowing his tongue to slip inside.
Zolt kissed me with intensity and purpose that made me forget that neither of us had brushed our teeth.
T-bone Stanley was one intimidating man. The dude was huge—much bigger than I remembered him. I sat there listening to him update Zolt on where the investigation stood, but all I could think about was I wouldn’t want to be the person who pissed him off. He took up half the couch, and I swear his arms were as big as my thighs.
“So, Irelyn,” he said, returning my attention to him. “As far as we can tell, there seems to be a party once a month. Since Marcus has been out of town, he’s planning a big one for next weekend.” He rubbed his hand over his baldhead, reflecting his nervousness.
“This was the weekend he intended to auction you.” T-bone took his glass of water from the coffee table and drained it in one gulp.
“Oh,” I said, my stomach churning, threatening to upchuck my breakfast.
Zolt grabbed my hand and squeezed, and I wondered if I looked as green as I felt.
“Hey, don’t worry, we found out in time. Nothing’s going to happen,” he said and kissed my knuckles.
I nodded, but I still couldn’t get over how close I’d come to being a ploy in Marcus’s fucked up game. If Daddy hadn’t hired Zolt, and we didn’t have this crazy connection, Marcus would have succeeded with his plan. It was all just a little too close to home. I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself.
Zolt put his arm around me and kissed my head. “I’m here now. He has to come through T-bone and me. That’s just not going to happen.”
I leaned my head on Zolt’s shoulder, feeling safe and wanted, and forced a smile to my face. “I know it’s just so unbelievable. I never dreamed he was this demented.”
“I’d prefer to be the one on the inside, but apparently the club is almost Aryan in their admittance policies.”
“Yeah, that’s Marcus, he’s extremely prejudice. Yet another one of his winning personality traits.” The more I thought about it, the more I failed to see why he and Chris ever became friends, and the more what I’d done with him twisted my stomach.
“Jackson Wyatt will fit right in. He’s tall, blonde, and blue-eyed, and he’s a badass, deceptively so. Having worked with the CIA, he’s great undercover. No one will be any the wiser about his motivations.”
T-bone glanced at his phone; then said, “If you’re set on going Irelyn, my boys tell me the ranch is clear. We should move soon.”
“Yep, I need to see for myself.” I didn’t want to go, but I knew I had to. I owed it to Chris to follow this through.
“I don’t like it.” A man’s deep, no nonsense, Irish voice said from across the room.
My head snapped up to see Sloan standing at the entrance to the great room, leaning on a pillar.
“Irelyn, we can deal with this. There’s no reason for you to go,” he said and crossed his arms over his massive chest.
“Sloan? What are you doing here?”
“We thought it would be best to involve Sloan since he has skills and experience you can’t imagine.”
“What skills and experience?” I tilted my head and tried to see something in my chauffeur I hadn’t seen prior. There had always been a certain air about him that I couldn’t quite put my finger on—not exactly intimidating but not warm and fuzzy either. To me though, Sloan had always been sweet and caring.
I looked over at him and saw mirth dancing in his gunmetal gray eyes. Sloan was good-looking, and he certainly did justice to the black jeans and black T-shirt he was wearing. But I could see now what I’d always missed in him, or what he’d never shown me.
Sloan Sullivan could fuck you up and not think twice about it.
Knowing that, I dipped my head and stared at my hands in my lap.
Zolt looked over at me and gave me a funny look himself, cocking his head.
Sloan stepped forward moving closer to where Zolt and I sat. There was a new determination in his gaze, which flicked between Zolt and me.
“Irelyn, are you sure you want to go there? It's been a long time, and I'm not sure that's the best thing for you to revisit.”
I gave Sloan a reassuring smile. “I think I have to. I mean, I don't want to, but it's my duty. I owe it to Chris.”
Zolt stroked my leg but didn't say anything. He wasn't going to make that decision for me, though I knew he preferred I didn't go.
I glanced over at T-bone and saw the same expression Sloan wore on his face. They all wanted me to stay here, let the men deal with this. And maybe that would be the smartest thing. But Marcus had already taken too much from me, and it was time for me to stand up for myself and my family since Daddy couldn’t or wouldn’t.
“All right, then let's get on it.” T-bone stood from the couch, and I swear I heard the couch groan in response. My eyes traveled up his massive body, and I flash backed to the days when he and Zolt used to play and how they worked together in unison. I wondered if it was a pattern they’d easily return to.
Determined, I calmed my frazzled nerves and stood, smoothing my black Maxi dress. If this was the right thing for me to do, why did I feel as if I wanted to puke? Either way, I just needed to get this over.
Zolt held my hand the entire trip as we sat in the back of the town car that Sloan drove. The closer we got to the ranch, the more my stomach did flip-flops. Daddy had to know about this, otherwise Marcus wouldn't be able to control the property. But I couldn't get lost in Jacob Wilkes betrayal of
his family. I'd save that for later when I knew exactly what was going on and could confront him face-to-face.
We arrived at the gates, stopping to allow Sloan to enter the code. I squeezed my eyes shut praying Marcus hadn’t changed it. Luckily, the gates swung open, and we continued toward the house.
From the outside, everything about the ranch looked exactly the way it did the last time I was here. If I closed my eyes, I could still pretend that nothing had changed. That Chris hadn’t been murdered out here, and that his face hadn't been bashed in by some unknown person; a person that may well be Marcus or somebody he knows.
My hands white knuckled the backseat as we moved closer to the front of the ranch house with white and green trim. I remembered as a child coming here, pretending that the tree-lined driveway was the path to a magical house with a magical man that was my grandfather.
My happiest and my absolute worst memories were formed here, and I swallowed hard past the lump forming in my throat. This was so much harder than I thought it would be.
Zolt put his arm around me, pulling me tight against his side, trying hard to comfort me. I loved him for this because I knew it didn’t come easily for him. I gave into his warm comfort, allowing his yummy, fragrance—a little, cocoa, floral, and other spicy scents—to calm me.
“Are you okay?” Zolt took my face in his hands and turned it towards him. “You can stay here in the car. You don't have to do this.”
“At least he kept the grounds manicured,” I grumbled, while steeling myself for whatever I’d see. My insides shook so badly, I wondered if it was possible to rattle your organs loose.
The car stopped, and Sloan exited, coming around to open the door for Zolt and me.
Behind his Oakley sunglasses, I could feel Sloan assessing me, worrying over me. I felt the same coming from Zolt as he placed his hand on the small of my back. They were both doing their best to give me their strength. Greedily, I latched onto it, knowing that without it, I might just fall into a million pieces.
The sound of another car turning onto the drive pulled me from the surfacing dread. My sandaled foot tapped with nervous anticipation, waiting for T-bone’s car to pull up beside the town car. He, plus three other of his men, exited the black Suburban. Suddenly, I was surrounded by a sea of testosterone. Among them, Zolt was the smallest, but not by much. I felt like a fragile girl in need of protecting, and I hated that they probably viewed me as such.
Taking a moment to gather myself, I closed my eyes and tried to pull my brother’s energy to me though I knew it was stupid. His essence no longer resided here, and I hoped that he’d moved on to a better place.
T-bone put his huge hand on my shoulder and squeezed, bringing me out of my sad reverie.
I looked back, acknowledging him. Smoothing my dress, I watched as he walked to the door and tried the handle.
When the handle refused to budge, I searched in my handbag and retrieved the keys, again, hoping that Marcus hasn’t changed the locks. Knowing that asshole now had control of a place so dear to me made me want to howl in anger and pain. But I did neither. I didn’t want these men to see me fall apart. Instead, I silently found the keys and handed them to T-bone.
“We’ll go inside first,” he said, nodding at his men. “If it’s safe, I'll come out and let you know. Don’t touch anything. We’ve interfered with their streaming video and alarm system so they won’t see live feed of us in here. I’d say we have less than ten minutes before we need to bust ass out of here.”
I nervously bit at the side of my thumbnail as Zolt and I watched T-bone and his men disappear into the house. What seemed an eternity later, they emerged, shaking their heads.
“Be prepared. Marcus has outfitted this house for purposes of the sex club. It’s a BDSM lover’s wet dream. Irelyn, you’ll see things I'm assuming you've never seen before.”
Zolt stopped and stood in front of me. “Are you sure, baby?” he asked for the trillionth time, gently running his hand over my cheek. “We can take care of this. I’ll think none the lesser of you if you stay here and wait with Sloan.”
“I'm going in there to see this shit for myself. I appreciate all the concern, but I’m not made of glass, and I don’t want to be coddled. I can handle this. Can we just get it over with?”
“All right,” Zolt softly kissed my lips. Then, he took my hand and led me into the ranch house. I sucked in a breath as I looked around. My stomach fell to the floor, and I forced down the bile rising in my throat. Nothing was the way I’d left it the last time I was here. My grandfather’s lovely home had been turned into a den of iniquity. Tall nightclub style chairs and tables were arranged into a sitting area, and a large walnut bar lined the far wall. My grandfather grew up with an alcoholic father, and he didn’t allow drinking in his house. To see the endless rows of bottles—all top shelf brands—made me want to take a baseball bat and bust the shit out of them.
The once whitewashed walls were now painted a deep red with a black trim. Black velvet couches broke up the great room into an intimate seating area. I gritted down on my teeth to keep the screams from bursting free.
With trembling legs, I continued forward into the house, afraid of the next assault on my childhood memories.
Zolt kept a tight grip on my hand as we moved forward toward the bedrooms. He stopped me in the hall in front of the first bedroom and went inside. His dilated pupils said he was surprised but he also seemed a little excited. I swear his breath had sped up.
I narrowed my eyes and took him in, wondering what the hell would be in there that would excite him?
Gathering courage I didn’t possess, I pushed him aside and walked into the bedroom that used to be mine. The bedroom where my grandma tucked me in when I was a little girl, and the same room where I cried my eyes out after grandpa died.
“Holy shit!” I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand. If I didn't know better, I'd swear I just walked into the red room of pain. BDMS implements of all flavors and uses lined the walls. Ropes, whips, canes, and other instruments I didn’t even want to know the uses for, taunted me in my childhood bedroom. The main attraction was the cross bolted to the wall with restraining devices hanging from each end. I’d read BDSM romances, I had a vague idea what I was looking at, and I could admit to being curious. But to see them lying so casually about in the room where I’d spent long summers of my childhood flayed me.
Zolt didn’t leave my side, and the heat coming from his hand on my back forced my eyes to him. When I turned and looked at him, the heat from his gaze sent shivers throughout me.
What the fuck? Is Zolt into this? How long would it be before he got bored with our vanilla sex and wanted to move to this? Could I do this?
I crouched down and closed my eyes, searching for control. My hair fell forward, curtaining my face from view. A drink of anything right now would be welcome since my mouth had gone suddenly dry. If I lost it in front of these men, they’d assume I couldn’t handle what was going on. I didn’t want them thinking I was too delicate.
On a deep inhale and subsequent exhalation, I stood and brushed my hair from my face. I let the anger and hatred for Marcus flood me. Then, I squared my shoulders and kicked up my chin.
“Marcus is a fucking dead man,” I said with cold, calculated words. Then, I turned and calmly left the room and the house, knowing that if it were the last thing I did, Marcus Xavier would pay dearly.
When we slid into the town car, Irelyn immediately shut the privacy window between Sloan and us. I knew what she was going to ask, knew that she’d seen my lustful gaze take her in while we stood in the bedroom.
I couldn’t help myself. Irelyn was fucking hot, and the thought of her tied to my bed made my blood boil and my cock stiffen.
“Are you a Dom?” she asked with a quaver in her voice.
“A Dom, no. But I like to play.”
She sucked in the edge of her plump, gorgeous lip as she considered my answer. “You want to play with me, don’t you?”
It was my turn to suck on my own lip as I thought about her sprawled on my bed. Oh, what I could do to that luscious body of her.
“Yes,” I said huskily.
“Oh.” Her eyes narrowed in worry. “So you want to hurt me?”
“No, Irelyn, absolutely not. I’d never hurt you.” I took her hand and brought it to my lips. “I want to introduce you to pleasures beyond your imaginings. There’s a fine line between pain and pleasure. When your body is in a heightened sexual state, it reacts to pain differently. Just a little pain can increase your pleasure tenfold.”
“This is what you like? So, is what we’ve done not enough for you?” The sadness in her tone made me cringe.
“No, baby! Are you kidding me? Sex with you is fucking amazing—the best I’ve ever had.”
“But you want more?”
“Only because I know it will make what we already have out of this fucking world. But only if you trust me and believe that I’d never hurt you. Do you, Irelyn? Do you trust me?”
“Yes, without a doubt.” She smiled at me and her sable-browns glittered. Though I could sense the apprehension, I could also see excitement.
I moved her closer to me, then glided my hand up the soft skin of her neck, and cupped the back of her head.
With my lips at her ear, I kept my voice low and sultry. “I can make you come so hard you’ll forget your fucking name. You want that, don’t you, baby?”
“Yes,” she growled. Her hooded gaze captured mine, and I could tell she was half way there already.
“Good. So do I.” I kissed her behind her ear and watched as she turned into taffy in my hands, soft and malleable. I brought both of her legs up and rested them on my lap. With soft caresses, I worked my hands along her flawless skin to the sweet junction between her thighs.
Irelyn’s eyes darted to the front of the car where Sloan drove.
“Relax,” I whispered. “He won’t hear you.”
“Okay,” she whispered, and leaned back against the seat. She closed her eyes, letting her legs fall open to me.
