The Man Who Has No Heart

by Victoria Quinn

  I didn’t even need to think about it.

  “There’s something I want to say before we go.”

  He turned back to me, standing at the door.

  “It’s a little awkward, and I don’t want the driver to overhear us.”

  He waited, his eyes focused on my face.

  “I have to bill you for these hours…because if I don’t and someone checks the log, they’ll get suspicious.” There were lots of times when I hadn’t want to charge him because I’d wanted to be there, but now I was declining other projects to make room for him, so if I didn’t fill up my log sheet with billable hours, my boss would eventually catch on. “I don’t want to—”

  “Money well spent.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief. Just because billionaires were rich didn’t mean they weren’t weird about money. Some of my wealthiest clients were the biggest hagglers, getting upset if breakfast was more than thirty dollars…even if that was nothing to them. Deacon didn’t behave that way at all. It seemed like wealth was a pleasant byproduct of his hard work, not his primary motivation to put in those long hours. He wasn’t motivated by money, but lives.

  “And it’s a bargain—because I’d pay a lot more for you.”

  There was a woman who worked in the area, managing the vacation homes of clients, basically what I did in Manhattan. So, whenever Deacon was coming to visit, I had her stock the fridge, clean the house, change the sheets, get his fishing gear ready. I’d rolled the dice when I asked her to do this, but I knew Deacon pretty well. He was impossible for people to read, but not for me.

  He carried the bags into the house and placed them in his bedroom on the second floor.

  I went to the covered porch and looked at the quiet lake, listened to the sound of the trees in the breeze, smelled the fresh air that made the smog more difficult to inhale every time we returned to the city.

  It was so peaceful, so quiet, a nice break from my hectic life.

  Deacon shut the door behind himself then came up behind me, his arms circling my waist while his chin rested on my head.

  I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against him, my arms moving on top of his. This was the first time I’d really felt happiness, like I was exactly where I was supposed to be, with the man I’d been waiting for.

  He squeezed me against him, bending his head down so his lips rested against the back of my head. His arms remained in place for a long time, like he wanted to stay there with me forever. “What do you want to do first?” He whispered the question because it was so quiet by the lake that he didn’t need to raise his voice at all. His dick was hard in his jeans, pressing into my lower back.

  My hands squeezed his. “The same thing you want to do.”

  His arms tightened around my chest, like tree trunks encasing me. His mouth slid to my neck, and he started to kiss me aggressively, his lips sucking, his tongue dragging, his hands touching my body through my clothes. His lips moved to my ear, and he gave me a hot breath, silently telling me how much he wanted me, how much he wanted to rip off these clothes and take me for the rest of the afternoon.

  He stood at the foot of the bed with his hands on my hips, keeping my back arched the way he liked so he could pound his dick into me hard and fast, staring at my ass as he worked up a sweat, groaning the entire time. “Fuck, this ass…” It was the first time he’d taken me like this, nailing me like a whore he paid top dollar for. The slow lovemaking had happened for most of the day, but once I was on my hands and knees, he turned carnal, fucking me like an animal.

  I liked it.

  His fingers reached across my body to my stomach and belly button, and he squeezed me with his large hands as he kept me in place, his hips thrusting rhythmically to give me that big dick deep and hard. “Jesus fucking Christ.”

  I didn’t think I could stay wet after a few hours. I didn’t think I could come again after all the orgasms he’d given me that afternoon and the day before. But my pussy tightened around him, and I came again, my face pressing into the bed as my ass moved higher in the air.

  He stepped closer to me, giving it to me deep now, making me wince because his head was hitting me in the cervix. He groaned over and over, becoming louder with every sound, and then he came with a loud moan. His cock throbbed inside me as he finished, his fingertips digging hard into my flesh.

  I could feel his weight inside me, feel the warmth and density of his come, getting another load in addition to the others he’d already given me.

  He slowly pulled out of me before he kneeled and gave my ass a playful bite with his teeth.

  I groaned at the touch, liking the surprise.

  He went into the bathroom and got in the shower.

  I got comfortable on the bed, turned to the window so I could look at the lake and the trees. I was naked under the sheets but so comfortable I didn’t want to move. I wanted to join him in the shower, but I continued to lie there, his come dripping out of me.

  He came out minutes later, his hair still a little damp after he dried it with a towel. He pulled on a new pair of boxers before he joined me in bed, spooning me from behind so we could both look out the window. His warm chest was nice against my back, and it was one of the rare times when he wasn’t hard, probably because we were both empty after hours in the bedroom.

  He sprinkled kisses down the back of my neck and over my shoulder, his stubble slightly coarse when his lips were so soft.

  “You like my ass, don’t you?”

  His kisses stopped for a moment, his lips resting against the back of my shoulder. He processed what I’d said and continued his kisses toward my ear before his lips gave me his warm breaths. “Sexiest ass I’ve ever seen.” His palm smacked my ass, giving it a playful spank. He continued to kiss me as his fingers kneaded my cheek.

  “Yeah?” I turned and looked at him over my shoulder, knowing models and perfect tens used to occupy his bed long before I did. Valerie was model status, and he slept with her for years. I was probably the most ordinary woman he’d ever been with.

  “Yes.” He looked me in the eye as he spoke, the sincerity obvious in the look. He said everything literally, didn’t know how to communicate in any other way, so I trusted his honesty. “I’ve checked out your ass a million times in those tight skirts you wear.”

  My arm reached behind me and cupped the back of his head, cradling his face close to mine. I’d had no idea his eyes wandered where they shouldn’t because his reactions were usually controlled, but I didn’t have eyes in the back of my head…so I’d missed it.

  He kept his face close to mine, his hand gliding over my stomach and then to my tit, and he grabbed it firmly. He moved his forehead to mine as his palm migrated to the skin over my heart, touching me the way I touched him sometimes. “You’re the sexiest woman I’ve ever been with, Cleo.”

  We sat on the patio in front of the fireplace after dinner, drinking beer with our chairs close together. A blanket was over both of us, and we listened to the sound of the flames burning the wood, the crickets that sang to the shores, the silence of the wilderness.

  We didn’t say anything for a long time, because nothing needed to be said.

  He finished his beer before he set it on the table beside him. He didn’t stand up to get another. Instead, he grabbed my hand under the blanket, his eyes still on the fire, touching me the way I’d touched him last time we were here.

  My fingers squeezed his.

  “I miss Derek.” His quiet voice broke the silence.

  I stared at the side of his face, his cut jawline that was sprinkled with his shadow. “I miss him too.” This weekend at the cabin was so romantic, but it wasn’t quite the same without him. I missed his questions, missed the way he tried to teach me things, the way he lit up both of our lives.

  “I love how good you are with him.”

  “Well, he’s an easy kid to love.”

  “For you, maybe,” he said as his eyes remained on the fire. “Valerie says he has a hard time pl
aying with other kids…”

  “Only because he’s so advanced.” His personality wasn’t the problem. He was just interested in building models and studying the universe instead of learning basic skills he’d picked up years ago. “And I understand him because he’s a lot like you…and I understand you.”

  He turned his head my way, a slight smile on his lips. “Yeah…I think you’re right.”

  I didn’t think about the future much, of having my own family, stuff like that. My career demanded so much of my attention that I didn’t even entertain the luxury. But I realized I would be a stepmother to Derek someday. I didn’t mind at all…because I loved that boy like he were my own. I didn’t care if he wasn’t mine, didn’t care that he was made with another woman. “I’ll work on getting Valerie out here.”

  He dropped his smile at the mention of her. “I think I fucked that up…” He turned back to the fire.

  “And we’ll smooth it over like last time.”

  He stared at the flames for a while. “You were right about her. She doesn’t want me to be with you.”

  My eyebrows rose. “She said that?”

  “No. But she asked why I was spending so much time with you. Apparently, Derek speaks very highly of you.”

  I hadn’t foreseen that problem, which was stupid, because Derek was talkative. Instead of being annoyed, I was touched, touched that Derek felt such a connection to me. Deacon and I would never have a chance if I didn’t have the love of his son. “We’ll invite her out for a visit and show her there’s nothing between us.”

  There was a change in energy in the air, like the fire burned a little hotter, and he turned his head toward me, his fingertips suddenly limp. He stared at me, his gaze hard. “I’m not going to lie. I’m not going to pretend that I’m not in a serious, meaningful, and monogamous relationship with you.”

  It was so sweet that I didn’t focus on how angry my suggestion made him. “If she thinks you’ve moved on, she’ll have no incentive to come here. We need to get her settled here first before we confess.”

  “Moved on?” he asked. “I moved on the second I packed my bags and left.”

  My hand squeezed his, sheathing his anger. “I know it’s stupid and immature, but our goal is to get Derek here. That’s the only thing that matters. Our relationship is not the priority. Derek is the priority.”

  The anger slowly left his gaze as he released a deep breath, like he knew I was right. “I fucking hate her…”

  “I know.”

  He shook his head as he rubbed his fingertips across his scruffy jaw. “I can’t believe I was with her five years…when I could have been with you.” He looked at the fire again, his jaw tight with a grimace.

  “But maybe we wouldn’t have met. Maybe there wouldn’t have been any openings in the building. Maybe you wouldn’t have moved to Manhattan at all. We shouldn’t wish to rewrite the past, not when we have no idea what would have happened.”

  He was quiet as he looked into the fireplace.

  “We’ll get Derek here, and everything will fall into place.”

  He finally gave a slight nod.

  “By the way, how did you get that residence? There’s a waiting list with a hundred people on it. You bypassed all of that.”

  He released a deep sigh, like the question was a point of contention for him. “I wish I could tell you…but I can’t.”

  I couldn’t stop the surprise from coming over my face.

  “It has nothing to do with you—I just have to honor this person’s privacy.”

  Did he know my boss? If he did, wouldn’t he have mentioned that before? My curiosity was strong, but I had to respect his request.

  I turned quiet, looking into the fire while relishing the comfortable silence. His hand was still in mine, and I enjoyed how right this felt, how precious this moment was. When I met my husband, I thought it felt right. When we got married, I believed it would last forever. After that crashed and burned, I assumed I would never have faith in a relationship again, that I would only see good moments as future memories. But I didn’t feel that way with Deacon. It really did feel right…feel different. “Did you tell Tucker?”

  He nodded.

  “And was that okay?” Nothing had really happened between Tucker and me, but it would be a little awkward for a while since we did date for over a month. When I had lunch with his family, it definitely felt a little weird. I didn’t want to cause animosity between two brothers, the only person Deacon had besides me.

  “Yes.” He turned back to me, his brown eyes a lighter color when they reflected the fire. “He wants us to be together. The day after you broke it off, he drove back up here and told me you didn’t…” He faltered for a moment, like saying the words out loud bothered him a bit. “Sleep with him…because of me.” His eyes remained on mine, as if he’d asked a question even though he posed it as a statement.

  I hadn’t consciously thought about my decision when it happened. When Tucker was on top of me, I knew it wasn’t right. And it wouldn’t be a mistake I could just forget about. My actions would be permanent, a wedge between Deacon and me that I thought we might not be able to get past…someday. I didn’t realize how much I wanted him at the time, that the need was so biological, my mind wasn’t even fully aware of it. “It’s always been you, Deacon.” I didn’t have to hide the truth or minimize my feelings. I could just be honest. “When you mentioned Tucker was interested in me and said you didn’t care whether I dated him or not…it hurt. I’d never had any interest in Tucker but went out with him anyway…because I was sad.” They looked so much alike, and Tucker and I were more compatible, with his carefree attitude, his jokes, his line of work. But Deacon had always been the man I wanted.

  He was quiet for a long time, like he was replaying the words in his head, dissecting them. “I never liked you dating him.”

  I didn’t know when his feelings had started, or at least when he’d realized them. But I didn’t think they went back that far into the past. “Then why didn’t you say something?”

  “Because if I wasn’t going to be with you, it was a dick move to stand in the way.” He turned back to the fire. “I told Tucker I wasn’t interested in a relationship—with anyone—and he seemed to really like you, so…”

  My thumb brushed over his knuckles, feeling the large size of his palm.

  “Tucker tried to talk me out of it a couple times…but I never listened.”

  I watched him stare at the fire.

  “After you were gone, I realized he was right. He always told me that my relationship with Valerie was toxic because she was the wrong person…and it would never be like that with you. He was right.” He turned back to me, his hand squeezing mine. “I just never imagined I could have someone like you, that I would ever meet a woman who would understand me. Never thought I’d meet a woman who didn’t want my wallet. Never thought I would meet a woman who would be so good to my son. I just…never thought I would meet someone who liked me for me…and no other reason.” His eyes stayed on my face, his brown eyes burning into mine.

  “I never thought I would trust a man again…but I trust you.”

  His body went still, his eyes softening.

  “I know you would never hurt me, never be unfaithful to me, never lie to me. I loved my husband when we were together, but being with you makes me realize he never understood me…not the way you do. He was the wrong person…and you’re the right person.”

  We lay in bed together, my leg over his hips, our faces close together on the same pillow. The sheets were to our waists, revealing his beautiful tanned skin, the shadows between his grooves of muscle.

  Since we’d spent the afternoon in bed, both our bodies needed time to recuperate. I wore one of his shirts to bed, smelling like him, and I looked into his handsome face as I lay beside him, loving the scruff along his jaw.

  His fingers slid under my shirt, touching the bare skin of my hip and stomach. His fingertips were callused and dry, like h
e used his hands all the time in the office, wearing thick gloves and constantly washing his hands.

  But I loved it when he touched me anyway.

  His eyes were on me, hardly blinking, examining me like there was nothing else he’d rather stare at. There was nothing else in the world he would rather be doing. When we’d come to the cabin, I’d expected him to pull out his laptop and paperwork for an hour or two, but it seemed as if he hadn’t even packed them. Work was the last thing on his mind. His brown eyes should have been ordinary, but with the way they sat in that masculine face, they were gorgeous. They fit his personality perfectly, the strong and silent type.

  There wasn’t a single thing about him I would change. Sometimes Derek was easier to talk to because he had normal social intelligence like everybody else, but I still didn’t wish Deacon had that himself. He was perfect the way he was. “So, you think your mother will like me?”

  His hand slid over my stomach, his outstretched fingers spanning across my belly and part of my rib cage. “I don’t care what she thinks.”

  “Really?” She was a very sweet person who clearly loved her son deeply. She was easy to talk to, very kind, but she was probably protective over her children the way all mothers were. After what happened with Valerie, Margo probably wanted someone good enough for Deacon. I was a servant to the rich, so I might not fit the bill.

  “If I cared what she thought, I wouldn’t have married Valerie in the first place.”

  “Well…in that case, you should have listened.”

  He smiled slightly, taking my joke. “My mother is afraid I’ll die alone, so she’d be happy to see me with someone, anyone, at this point.”