Under Contract (The GEG Series)

by Jacquelyn Ayres

  We walk into my bedroom and I can already smell the essence of her.

  “What?” she asks, setting her wine down and pulling her hair out of its tie. It tumbles down, and I fight the urge to dive my hands in.

  “It smells like you in here,” I start. She crooks her head sideways. “I like it.”

  “Good.” She slides her hands up my chest and slowly unbuttons my shirt. I place my hands on her hips. “Uh ... no touching, Mr. Colton.” She taps my hands. I squeeze before I let go. “Bad boy,” she mumbles.

  “I can be.” I try to kiss her. She pulls her hands away and crosses her arms.

  “Let me know when you’re ready to behave.”

  “Sorry, baby. I’m ready.” I try to hold back my smile.

  Satisfied, Charlotte runs her hands up my chest again and pushes my shirt off my shoulders. She bites at my left shoulder while pulling my tank top out from my pants. I help her tug it over my head. Her mouth travels hot up my neck to my chin and then down my jawline. She nips below my ear and every muscle in my body twitches as I try to control myself.

  “Mitch.”

  Damn her sexy voice.

  “Yes.” I clear my throat as her lips hover near my ear.

  “You may kiss me only when I am kissing you. Under no circumstances will you touch me unless I tell you to. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m going to taste and touch every inch of your skin until I’m satisfied with the level of crazy I’m driving you, and then, Mitch ...” She takes a break to suck at my earlobe. “I’m going to take you in my mouth and then fuck you so hard you erupt like a volcano that’s lain dormant for a thousand years. Would you like that, baby?” She starts at my belt.

  “Jesus Christ, Charlotte ... Jesus Christ!” It’s all I can say because I think I may be having an asthma attack. Christ, I might even come undone from her words.

  “Mitch, before I get started, I need to show you what my thoughts are doing to me. What you do to me.” She looks straight into my eyes as she guides my left hand onto her hip. “You can touch me this once. Stop when I tell you and don’t do it again until I’m ready for you to take me.” God help me ... she’s going to make me lose my mind tonight. She takes my hand and brings it to the knot on her robe. “Undo my robe, Mitch.” My heart is pounding so loud in my ears. I untie it and she pulls the robe off.

  I can’t even stand the sight of her in her lacy white babydoll. It’s split open at her belly and I want to trace her navel with my tongue. Her nipples stretch against the material, eager to greet me. She takes my hand again and brings it to her stomach. Slowly, she slides it down. “Mitch, I want you to touch me. Touch what’s yours, baby, and see what you do to me.” Oh, those jade eyes. I turn my palm to rest against her belly. I watch her close her eyes, lick her upper lip, then bite her bottom one as my hand slowly slides under the band of her panties. It travels over her mound and slides underneath. My fingers push her open and I take in a sharp breath.

  “Goddamn it, Charlotte.” I can barely breathe as my fingers swirl around in her wetness.

  “See what you do to me, how ready I am for you, how badly I want to stretch for you, baby?” I barely let her finish saying “baby” before I plunge my fingers deep inside of her. Her pelvis rocks with my thrusts and a few soft moans escape her throat. “Mitch ... oh, Mitch ... you have to stop now.” She tries to pull away.

  “No,” I say sternly. “I want inside of you now, Charlotte.” I start to nudge her back to the bed.

  “Mitch.” She looks straight into my eyes. “Please, stop.”

  “Ugh!” I groan, pulling my hand away.

  “Good boy. My hip ... eh, my ass, I guess, too.” She laughs, looking down at the hand that I’ve slid around her. She grabs it and leads me to the bed. I try to pull myself together as she undoes my pants and then whips them down. “Jesus, Mitch!” Her eyes widen at my erection.

  “Yeah, I thought I’d knock a few walls down while I was up here.” I look around.

  “I think you could ... with no problem.” Her eyes dance playfully at me and once again I’m captivated by her beauty. I never thought I’d meet another woman who would make me feel ... everything. Everything you feel when you’ve found someone who helps you naturally be yourself. There are no reservations, just acceptance.

  “Lie down, Mitch,” Charlotte says, pushing my chest lightly with a curious look on her face.

  “Why are you looking at me like that, baby?” I ask as I climb back.

  “Because you’re deep in thought.”

  “I was, but now I’m back, focusing on my gorgeous girlfriend.”

  “You’d better be.” She gives me a crooked smile as she climbs on top to straddle me. “No, Mitch.” She smacks my hands away. I let out a frustrated groan. “Close your eyes, sweetie.” She kisses me. Mmm ... so soft. I close my eyes and inhale deeply her lovely scent.

  Charlotte takes my hands and places them just above my head. Her nipple skims over my lips. I nip gently.

  “Mitchell—I don’t know your middle name—Colton!” she yells. I can’t help but laugh. Carefree ... I forgot how nice this was.

  “I don’t have a middle name, baby,” I say, a huge grin stretched across my face.

  “Mitchell Colton.” Her breath hits my face. “The longer you behave badly, the longer it will take me to please you.” She strums her fingers over my lips.

  “That’s not possible.” I kiss them and open my eyes to look into hers. “You’re here ... in my arms. Consider me pleased.” I lean up and grasp her lips. She parts them and palms my face as I deepen the kiss. Christ! Her tongue is so soft and seductive.

  “Mitch,” she complains against my mouth when my hands find her ass.

  “These panties are killing me. I want to bite you all along here.” I run my fingers along the bottom where her cheeks pop out.

  “Okay ... hands off,” she says, too much amusement in her voice for me to take her seriously. She tries to grab my hands, but I get hers and swiftly roll her onto her back. She fights me as I raise her arms above her head.

  “That’s it, baby—fight me. Make me work for it.” I pin both arms down with one hand and let the other slide up and under her babydoll. Her left nipple greets my fingers eagerly. My touch is gentle at first, but that quickly changes to accommodate her sensory needs. I’m already learning my baby’s signals. When she arches her back, giving me more access, she wants me to be harsher. Her moans tell me I’m right. My mouth replaces my hand so I can pull at her panties.

  “No!” She jerks her lower body in an attempt to push me off.

  “You’re not going to make this easy for me, are you?” I pin her legs down with mine. “Hope you’re not attached to these.” I rip her panties. “‘Cause you’re not anymore.” I pull them off her. She stares at me in shock as I climb over her, still holding her in place. “First mistake you made was taking too long to seduce me. I’m an impatient man, baby.” I kiss at her neck. “Second mistake was showing me how I affect you.” I force her legs open and grind up against her.

  “Third mistake?” she asks, trying to control her breathing. I shake my head. “I like when you take charge ... it turns me on.” She pushes against my arms, making me tighten my grasp.

  “For someone who doesn’t like to get spanked, you sure don’t know how to prevent it from happening.” I bite at her lip.

  “You’re mad at me?”

  “What? No, baby!” I look at her strangely. “I want to spank you because you turn me on, not because I’m mad at you. That, and you have an ass that screams ‘Spank me!’” I echo my voice and she laughs. “I’ll never hurt you, Charlotte ... not with intention.” I soften my gaze and collect her lips.

  “You gonna make Kitty hurt, baby?” She raises her pelvis to me, enticing me.

  “Does Kitty want to hurt, Charlotte?” I use my sexy (as she calls it) voice and nip at her earlobe.

  “Baby, Kitty’s been aching since I left this afternoon. A
ching so deeply inside.” Damn her and her seductive tone.

  “Aching for what? Tell me.” I release her arms as I trail kisses across her chest.

  “A boost of Morale, baby.” She pulls at my hair as I take her right nipple into my mouth. Just when I let my guard down, she flips me onto my back.

  “Damn!” I sigh. She giggles and puts all of her weight into pinning my arms down. I watch as she moves her mouth down my chest. The lower she goes, the less of an advantage she has on me. As soon as she releases enough pressure, I fling her onto her back again and harshly enter her.

  “Checkmate, baby,” I groan as I bury myself deeper inside of her. “You okay?” I lightly graze her cheek as she finally exhales.

  A smile forms at her lips. “Control freak.”

  “I heard a rumor that you like that.” I nudge her nose with mine before kissing her.

  “You heard correctly, Mr. Colton.” She kisses me back.

  “Perfect. Just ... perfect,” I whisper as I trace the few lines on her face.

  “Uh ... Mitch, Kitty would like to scratch your post now, if you know what I mean.” She nudges me with her knee.

  “This post?” I roll my hips.

  “Yes,” she gasps.

  “This one?” I roll a little harsher and deeper.

  “Oh God ... yes.” Her fingers dig into my shoulders and her legs wrap around my back.

  “Is this what my baby wants?” I thrust again. Quite frankly, I’m not sure who I’m torturing more here. “Because whatever my baby wants, she will always get. I’ll give you the world, Charley.” There I go ... laying my cards down again, damn it! In my defense, my dick is caught in a vice grip, telling me that Kitty definitely wans’more. It may be cutting off circulation to my other head.

  “Mitch ... that’s nice,” Charlotte says. “But will you kindly shut up and fuck the hell out of me now?” Her voice is driven by sexual frustration, and just in case I didn’t gather that on my own, she heels my ass.

  “Baby,” I say, grabbing her hands and pinning them above her head, “buckle up.”

  “Oh, thank Christ!” she says before I begin a course of relentless pounding. She orgasms almost instantly, which just drives me to a whole other level of crazy. I let go of her hands and quickly feel arms encircle me, holding me as we rock slowly together. Her body relaxes when she finishes her last quake. I raise her leg, and her calf casually falls onto my shoulder. I stare deeply into her eyes. It’s all there. I can see it—my future. My gut finally has my head convinced and I feel my heart exploding.

  “Mitch?” She reaches up to caress my face. I bring her leg back down to go around my waist. Slowly, I dip my head down and kiss her lips. My hand firmly finds a place on her hip, and I move at an agonizing, torturous pace. My eyes stay on hers as I make love to her, savoring every sound that escapes her throat.

  “Ma’am ... I said that’s two hundred, forty-three ninety-six,” the cashier sighs impatiently and pops her gum.

  “Huh? Oh.” My fog lifts. “Sorry.” I shake my head and run my new bank card through.

  “Have a nice day.” She smirks. Christ—what a brat! Shouldn’t she be in school? Brooklynn leans forward in the cart and rests her head against me.

  “Can I get someone to help me out to my car?” I ask the bagger as I stare at my two overflowing carts. She waves over a young man who grabs my other cart.

  “You know, Brooky ... I think I’ll take a nap this morning, too,” I say around a yawn as I back our fully-grocery-loaded Highlander out of the parking space. I turn the radio on, hardly believing it’s after ten a.m. It’s been almost four hours since I left the clutches of Mitch’s arms. He was in such a deep sleep; I didn’t want to wake him, so I left him a note. Besides, I’m a little ... hell, a lot more upset about not seeing him for three months. It’ll be good for me, though. I’m falling hard and fast for him, against my better judgment. The things he said to me didn’t help, either. I’m not quite sure what all of that was about. I almost feel as if he’s developing the same feelings for me, but then I have to remind myself that he’s paying me to be his girlfriend. He’s just playing the part, making it seem real for himself—right?

  I glance into the rearview mirror quickly. “Oh, Brooklynn.” I sigh at the sight of her completely passed out. Shit! I hope she transfers well today—I desperately need her to nap! Although, the fact that I was up most of the night having amazing sex instead of dealing with a sick child (which would be my usual reason for being up all night) puts a little spring in my step. I pull up to the garage and cut the engine. First thing is first—Loxy and Vader need to be sent out back so they don’t jump up on us while I carry her in.

  Slowly, I unbuckle Brooky, having survived my vicious Dobermans. Their method of choice is always death by licking. My “Beware of Attack Dog” sign is a big joke that warrants an eye roll from me every time I see it.

  My silent prayer seems to be working as I transfer Brooklynn to her crib. Okay ... forty-five bags of groceries and maybe a nap? I run out and grab the first batch of bags (which means if I add one more bag, my arms will pop of their sockets) and head back in. Just as I turn around from placing them on my floor, I gasp and jump at the sight of Mitch bringing in more bags.

  “I’ll get the rest. Put only the cold stuff away now!” he snaps and walks out. He’s angry? I shake my head and immediately follow his orders, mainly because I need to do something. “This is all of it,” he grumbles, plopping it on the floor. He starts rummaging through the bags, pulling out everything that needs to be refrigerated or frozen. His jawline is twitching and he hasn’t put any effort into looking up at me.

  “Mitch.” I touch his arm. He flinches away. Huh? “You’re mad at me—why?”

  “Because you left before I could get my two-hundred fifty-thousand dollars’ worth of pussy out of you!” he yells. Normally my mouth flies into action a lot quicker than my hands ... normally. I cradle my hand protectively. Damn it—that hurt!

  “Baby, let me see.” He reaches for my hand with no regard to his red, slightly swollen cheek.

  “Don’t touch me!” Oh, and here come the waterworks! Goddamn it! Sometimes it sucks to be a girl!

  Mitch steps back and fishes something out of his back pocket. I forget my anger for a moment and realize he’s wearing loose-fitting jeans and a white cotton T-shirt. He looks so “boy-next-door.” I’ve never seen him dressed so casually. Not that I’ve spent a lot of time out of bed with him.

  “Here.” He passes me something shaped like a business card. “I was going to use this for its original purpose, but I’d like to trade it for being an asshole who says things he doesn’t mean. I was mad and I went for your jugular. I’m sorry, Charlotte. Please forgive me.” He shuffles his feet and won’t maintain eye contact, which makes him seem ridiculously nervous for someone who’s always confident and in control. Then again—he’s flown off the handle a lot since I met him.

  I finally pull my eyes away from his and look down. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. It’s a fucking Get Out of Jail Free card from Monopoly.

  “I sat out in the parking lot of the toy store ‘til it opened at nine. I don’t do shit like that, Charlotte! If you knew me well enough, you would know that it meant something. You don’t know me well enough yet, and so you can only take me at my word. Trouble is, I’ve hurt you terribly with my words. Twice, now. All I can say is that I’m sorry. I haven’t been myself the past few days—not that you would know that, either. Christ, baby—will you say something? Your nattering has rubbed off on me.” He runs his hands through his hair and grasps it tightly while he exhales forcibly.

  I don’t say anything. Part of me wants to tell him to leave, and the other part wants my aggressive Mitch to take me up against the kitchen wall. I slip the Monopoly card into my purse (I could hand it back and spank the shit out of him!) and decide to put the groceries away. Groceries are a safe decision; they won’t hurt my mind, heart, or body—although, that wall-banging thought i
s still enticing me. Closet whore! Mitch takes this as his cue to shut up and help me.

  “You pack quite a wallop, Ms. McKendrick,” he says after a few minutes and bumps my hip playfully.

  “So do you, Mr. Colton,” I say flatly, shooting my daggers at him. I’m not playing. He winces.

  “Baby ... I ...” he starts, but I put my hand up, not wanting to hear another word. “Okay.” He sighs and continues to help me.

  “So ...” we both say in unison after five minutes of silence and the last grocery finding its home. “Go ahead,” we both say, then laugh lightly.

  “Ladies first,” he says, and gestures to me.

  “You sure about that?” I cock an eyebrow.

  “Baby ... stop.” He closes the gap between us and runs his hands up and down my upper arms. Damn his sexy voice and seductive hands!

  “So,” I say, trying to pull my wits about me. “You were coming here with the intent of spanking me?”

  “Yes.” He pushes my chin up to look me in the eyes.

  “Why?” Breathe, Charley ... breathe. Damn him and the way he looks at me!

  “You left me.” He looks down. “You didn’t wake me to say goodbye.”

  “Mitch, you were sleeping so soundly. I didn’t want to wake you. I know for a fact that you’ve gotten less sleep than me these past few days.” I crook my neck slightly to make his eyes find mine. “Besides, I left you a note. Did you not see it?”

  Mitch scoffs at the mention of my note. “Dear Mitch, Safe flight. See you in three months. Love, Charlotte.” He says every word verbatim, not that there were many. “What the fuck was that, Charlotte?” Uh-oh, jawline clenching—telling how little muscles in the cheek are. His face is so close to mine, I’m finding it hard to concentrate. “Answer me,” he says through his teeth. The very teeth that nipped about every inch of skin on my body last night.

  “I ... uh, I was in a hurry, Mitch. I ... didn’t know what to say. I didn’t wake you for two reasons. First, I couldn’t be delayed in getting home to my kids.” I pull away from him and head to the sink. “Second, I wouldn’t have been able to leave knowing ...” I stop myself, and hopefully the forming tears.