Strictly Confidential

by Lynda Aicher

  She watched him under hooded lids, the blue of her eyes sparked with dark lust and something he longed for yet couldn’t quite believe. He held there, connected in the most physical way possible, but that alone didn’t make it intimate. No, it was the tenderness spreading in his heart and the high that hummed their connection and bound them together.

  Rightness curled up his spine to snap his control. He rose to his knees, holding her hips up so he could watch his dick slide in and out of her. She gripped the bedding and wrapped her legs around his waist, passion wiping out the innocence her freckles tried to project.

  Power raced on a rush of adrenaline and authority. He had no command over her, which made her gift so much more addictive. She was his to have. His to drive wild. His to possess.

  The thrill of that tore through him to demolish his good intentions. He drove into her until his thighs burned and his arms struggled to hold her still as she twisted and arched, lost in her desire.

  “Kennedy.” Fucking… “Your cunt is so damn tight.” Her walls clenched around him, ripping a guttural groan from deep in his chest. “Do it again.”

  She complied immediately, a devilish gleam in her eyes. That was the fire that drove him.

  That underlying strength that never left her. Even now.

  He dropped down, wrapping her in his arms. Her breasts pressed against his chest, her legs remained around his hips as she dragged him even closer. Tighter. Until there was nothing between.

  Nothing.

  His heart thundered its wants and fed his dreams. He nuzzled her neck, hunger darkening his sight. It shattered everything except the unrelenting drive to fulfill her need. To give her what she craved while keeping her his.

  His. She was so damn his, even if she was scared to acknowledge it.

  Her skin was tender beneath his lips. Salty. Ripe. She tilted her head to the side. He thrust hard. Again. And again. Her muscles convulsed, tensed.

  His sweet, sweet Kennedy.

  He clamped down on the juncture of her neck and shoulder, holding tight when her cry pierced the air. Her pussy gripped him, stroking his dick in undeniable confirmation of their power. The two of them.

  His release tore through him in a savage declaration of trembling muscles and unrelenting relief that threatened to drown him. Her whimpers mellowed into a sigh, bringing him back to the woman in his arms.

  He pressed his lips to the spot he’d just marked. That wonderfully tempting spot on her neck that bruised so beautifully. Yeah, he liked that. He liked seeing his claim stated so boldly. Liked knowing that she did too.

  That dynamic only strengthened what they had, instead of hurting it. And it stayed within the limits they’d both set. It worked. They worked. He’d withheld that side of himself for years out of fear, now he couldn’t imagine their relationship without it.

  He drifted in the afterglow, getting lost in the long, lazy kisses that tasted of lethargy and contentment. What they’d just shared had been so much more than a fuck. He honestly didn’t know if he’d ever simply fucked her. Not Kennedy.

  And he was going to keep showing her how good they could be until she accepted the truth of what they shared. He was just as much hers at this point. Maybe more than was good for him, but he couldn’t change who he was. When he gave, he did it wholeheartedly, and Kennedy had his heart.

  Now she just needed to claim it.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “I’m here to see Ms. Keller,” Matt told the receptionist.

  “Hi, Mr. Hamilton.” The young woman flashed a smile, a cheekiness underlying her professionalism. “You’re looking nice today.”

  He glanced down at his suit. “I have a meeting.”

  “Oh!” She straightened, switching into full business decorum. “I’m sorry. I thought you were taking her to lunch again.”

  “I think coffee would be more appropriate right now.” Given it was only nine in the morning. They might’ve had more than a few lunch dates since that first one, but they were both too busy to take three-hour lunches.

  A blush rose up the receptionist’s neck in a steady flow that quickly engulfed her cheeks. She ducked her head. “I’ll let her know you’re here.”

  Matt placed the woman somewhere in her early twenties. Her first job maybe? Or was she connected to the Kellers somehow? Anyway, he hadn’t meant to make her self-conscious. “Thank you, Susan.”

  She blushed even deeper, and he moved away before the poor girl went up in flames. He stood by the door where he usually waited for Kennedy, the lobby empty except for him. He shifted his briefcase to his other hand and ran through the contract details in his head. The two of them had been floating the idea of how their businesses could help each other, but he hadn’t expected a deal to come through so quickly. He wouldn’t turn the work down or the opportunities it’d open. However, he wasn’t looking forward to the negotiations ahead.

  Separating pleasure and business was never fun, but he’d done plenty of work with men he considered friends. They could manage this.

  “Matt.” Kennedy entered the lobby, a warm but professional smile in place. “Thank you for coming over.” She extended her hand.

  He fell into business mode with zero effort or affront. “My pleasure.” Their handshake was nothing more than the standard efficient pump and release, yet her touch lingered in a reminder of how it could warm his palm when they strolled down the street or beach.

  “My father’s waiting in the boardroom.”

  She turned around without a hint of reaction to her words, but his own stomach dipped at the memory of his only trip to the Boardroom. The boardroom in this building. His groin tightened, lust flaring.

  He gritted his teeth and slammed a wall down on the images of Kennedy spread naked on the glossy table, of him sliding that lifelike vibrator into her. Yet they didn’t diminish as he followed her up the stairs and down the same hall he’d trekked only once before.

  He hadn’t given a thought to exactly where their meeting would take place. And now…he’d have to pretend he’d never seen Ray Keller’s daughter getting off on his fingers precisely where her father sat at the head of the table.

  Good fucking chance of that happening.

  “Mr. Keller,” Matt said, stepping up to greet the man who had the power to tank the contract—and potentially his relationship with Kennedy. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

  Ray gave him the same unbending glare his daughter could level. “I’m hoping I’ll be able to say the same thing.”

  Let the games begin. Matt chuckled appropriately, while realigning his tactics.

  “I’m sure we’ll all be pleased with the outcome,” Kennedy interjected, breezing over the tension with grace. “I asked Thad to join us since he closed the Calloway deal and has the best understanding of their expectations.” She turned to the older gentleman seated next to Ray. “This is Matt Hamilton, owner of McPherson Trucking.”

  Matt greeted Thad, who appeared to be close to Ray in age, but his persona was all affable salesman as opposed to hardass owner. He took a seat next to Kennedy, who sat in the free chair next to her father. The three of them presented a cohesive unit Matt had to navigate to land the lucrative contract Kennedy had presented.

  This was a prime example of connections landing deals better than any amount of cold calls or convention finagling. A part of him hated this side of his job, but another part of him thrived in the analytical gameplay.

  Ray flipped the folder open before him, effectively starting the meeting. “These rates are too damn high.” And they were off.

  The next hour was spent haggling over mileage, weight, rates, drivers, liability and almost every term in the contract. But the short of it was Keller needed more trucks to deliver the ongoing order of pallets Calloway needed and they didn’t have the means to do so. His lawyer had combed through every detail and would do so again before he signed the final agreement, but they were making headway here.

  “When is Calloway ex
pecting the first shipment?” Matt asked when Ray continued to lowball the deal, which was already a bargain as far as Matt was concerned.

  Ray’s scowl said it all. Matt already knew the answer and it didn’t give them much time to find a company who could fulfill the deliveries for them. They didn’t have the trucks themselves, and their resources were focused on increasing production to meet the new demand.

  “You’re not the only trucking company in the area,” Ray stated, like the fact wasn’t common knowledge.

  “But I’m the one who’s here with the available trucks and the manpower ready to meet your demand.”

  Ray’s scowl deepened. “What kind of business can you have if that’s true?”

  Matt looked him in the eye, refusing to flinch in the face of the benign insult. “One I’ve been prepping for an opportunity such as this.” He sat back, casting his gaze over the three of them. “We’re ready to grow, just like you are. I believe we can do so together, but those numbers are set for me.” He was done haggling and playing the game. “I can’t go any lower.” Not if he wanted to maintain his profit margin.

  “All right,” Kennedy said into the stalemate. “We’re both looking to expand. Calloway is our first venture into the LA area. We negotiated the pallet recycling requirement into the deal so you’re not driving back empty trucks.”

  “And a deal between us wouldn’t be possible without that.” He nodded to Thad, who’d been basically quiet through the entire meeting.

  “Which is why we included it,” Kennedy interjected. Her glare held an annoyed flare along with a hint of anger. “I was fully aware that no one can make a profit driving empty trucks around. The cost hike would’ve blown any benefit we’re trying to gain.” Irritation bled through her tone and punctuated each word.

  His need to help flared up so quickly, Matt didn’t even think to halt it. Kennedy was upset and it appeared to be at him. His eyes narrowed, head tilting a notch. He moved his hand without thought, intending to stroke her jaw in that way that soothed her.

  She stiffened, her eyes widening before they closed. Briefly. For less than a second. But that was all it took.

  “Kennedy.” Ray’s reprimand crashed through the room to smack his daughter before it ricocheted off her and onto Matt.

  He dropped his hand, fisting it so tightly in his lap his knuckles ached. Bile soured in his throat the instant understanding took hold, but it was too late. He’d just shifted into control mode, and she’d responded. Right there. In the middle of the damn meeting.

  In front of her father.

  Sweat beaded down his back as his mortification took hold. No. Just no. He would never do that to her—yet he had.

  Kennedy swallowed, a stiff smile forming. She looked to her father as an icy control took over, making every movement appear stiff. “Did I misspeak?”

  Matt could only sit there, thoughts reeling, a clammy sweat coating his back, lost in the turmoil tearing down every belief he’d indulged in over the last few months. He couldn’t trust himself. Not with this. Not with that fucking power game. The edge, that damn desire to control, drove him to excel, but it’d also driven his ex-wife to want more.

  Kennedy wasn’t his ex. But…

  Ray sniffed, his disapproval radiating so clearly, he didn’t need to clarify it. Thad leaned forward, his gentle manner sliding in to interrupt the silent standoff taking place between father and daughter.

  “I believe the terms of our agreement with Calloway, as well as the ones we’re currently discussing with McPherson, are beneficial to all parties.” His smile appeared calm, yet the lines around his mouth were tenser than they’d been before. “No one is stating otherwise. So how about we let this breathe for a day and we’ll get back to you, Matt?”

  “We don’t need to let it breathe,” Ray countered. “At least I don’t.” He flipped his folder closed before he stood. His curt demeanor would’ve been abrasive to most, but Matt had experienced worse in the military. Ray was the top of the Keller enterprise, and he held his power over every aspect of the company.

  Matt had just demoted Kennedy in the eyes of her father.

  His stomach heaved. His tie seemed to constrict around his throat. The strength he’d gleamed from this faux uniform, that sense of authority and position, threatened to choke him now. What had he done?

  “I’ll have legal fix what we agreed to and send over the amended contract to you ASAP. We’ll give this a six-month trial. Hopefully, with good results.” Ray nodded to Matt, which was clearly his signal to respond.

  Matt slowly stood, his composure falling into place on pure habit. Never flinch. Never buckle under a direct attack—no matter how messed up you are inside.

  “I look forward to doing business with you.” His voice sounded flat in his ears, but he couldn’t inject an ounce of pleasure into it. Not when Kennedy refused to look at him. Her eyes were focused out the window, that stiff smile barely hanging on.

  He’d done that to her.

  Ray came around Kennedy’s chair to shake Matt’s hand. He landed a hard slap to Matt’s arm in an attempt at camaraderie that fell flat. “Good. Let’s make this work for both of us.” He strode from the room, completely unware or uncaring of the wreckage he’d left behind.

  Kennedy slowly shoved her chair back before she rose. “I’m glad we worked that out.” She picked up her folders, clutching them a bit too firmly. “I have another meeting to get to.” Her apology was flashed to Matt in the form of a false smile. “Thad, do you mind seeing Matt out for me?”

  “Sure.”

  Thad had barely responded before Kennedy was passing Matt on her way to the door.

  Guilt tore at him, and he tried to apologize. “Kenne—”

  “Thank you.” She cut him off, her words sent to Thad before she left.

  Her dismissal was as harsh and cold as the one her father had flung at her. The chill built in his chest and spread outward until everything was numb. His heart. His thoughts. His emotions. Responding was impossible and inappropriate in the moment, so he simply moved forward.

  Thad came around the table as Matt placed his notes in his briefcase. “I, ah—”

  “Don’t worry about it.” He didn’t want Thad to explain or apologize for a situation he hadn’t created. Matt strode from the room, unable to engage in small talk and pleasantries. He didn’t need an escort to find his way out, but Thad still trudged behind him.

  “Matt.”

  The question in Thad’s voice caught him in the stairwell. Fuck. His urgency to get the hell out was overridden by the manners hounded into him by his mother. The salesman had nothing to do with anything that’d gone down. He’d tried to keep the peace and had quite possibly salvaged the deal with his one mediation.

  Matt stopped on the landing, choking back the anger he could only point at himself. That strangling sensation returned with a force, clenching down on his throat until he wanted to tear off his tie along with his coat and shirt and every piece of clothing that declared the authority he had no right to have.

  He forced himself to turn to Thad. His slower pace and wince highlighted his age and dropped another nail into Matt’s guilt coffin. Thad leaned on the railing as he took the last steps down to the landing.

  “Sorry about that,” he said with a grimace. “My knees aren’t as agile as they once were.”

  Matt hadn’t even thought about the elevator since Kennedy had never taken it. “Sorry. I wasn’t aware.” Or thinking of anything except getting the hell out.

  “I’m fine.” He waved off Matt’s piss-poor apology. “I just wanted to check if everything was good on your side.”

  Matt almost snorted at that. Right. “I’m good,” he managed to say without scoffing. “We’ll sign the contract if the terms come back as we agreed to in the meeting.”

  “Good.” His smile should’ve been pleased, yet it lacked the warmth required to make it so. He shoved his hands into his pockets, his suit coat tucked behind his arms. The whole
kindly elder vibe of his cracked slightly. He glanced up the stairwell. “I probably shouldn’t say this, but Kennedy is the true backbone of the company. She outlined and fought for every item in the Calloway deal, including the recycling item.”

  He looked away, unable to meet the eyes of the far-too-astute man. “I don’t doubt it. She’s an intelligent woman.” And he’d ripped that away from her when he’d directed his praise to Thad.

  “She is. Strong too.” Thad went silent, forcing Matt to look at him. Understanding was layered in eyes aged by time and wisdom. “The rumor mill’s been working overtime about you and Kennedy. I don’t know the details, but I do know she’s been happier since you started taking her to lunch.”

  Excellent. And he’d just burned her before the one person she tried to impress the most. “Your point is?” Matt asked, voice flat. Shame at being lectured by a man he didn’t know stung his pride and soured his stomach even more, but he’d earned every word.

  “My point is…” Thad’s tone hardened. “Her father rides her hard because he wants to see her succeed in an industry that has little respect for women in it. And she spends every damn second of her day trying to earn what is freely given to most men. I’d hoped that you understood that. Just like I hope you’ll think about what happened back there and then fix it.”

  Matt studied him, wanting to be annoyed at his overstep, yet humbled by the truth, and by Thad’s concern for Kennedy. “And who are you, exactly?”

  Thad’s shrug was a nod to casual that didn’t quite make it. “Just a guy who’s been working here since Kennedy started showing up with her father, asking questions no ten-year-old should be concerned about. Like how the production line worked, and pallet sizes, wood and sales channels, you name it. Her curiosity only increased as she grew. She loves this company, and most of the people here feel the same about her.”