by Sedona Venez
“So I heard Kyle Fillion is following you around like a lost puppy. Are you two fucking?” McKay asked boldly.
“Not even close.” I sighed heavily. “We dated in high school. He was a fuck-repeat-and-fuck-again fling.”
His eyes flashed as he arched his eyebrow at me. “High school?” His lips twitched into a mockery of a smile. “He’s chasing you around like you two fucked yesterday. That shit is pathetic.”
I tilted my head, kind of enjoying the sarcastic ruthlessness of McKay’s demeanor. “What can I say? Obviously, what’s between my legs is really memorable.”
McKay laughed, and it was a full-on sexy sound, which sent a zing to my cunt.
“Apparently.” He silently eyed me.
I squared my shoulders and took a deep breath. “Why are you gawking at me like that?”
He shrugged one massive shoulder. “Just trying to figure you out.”
I knew he was toying with me, but I was in no mood for games.
“There’s no riddle to me, McKay.”
“I beg to differ.” His lips tilted into a brief small smile.
I pasted a smile on my face and delivered my next line in a saccharine tone. “So are you going to continue to eye-fuck me?”
“Maybe.”
He smirked, and my heart skipped a beat.
I started to fidget, and then I forced myself to stand still. This man was fucking unnerving.
McKay reached up to run his fingers over my hair.
My jaw dropped. “McKay.”
Ignoring me, he expertly pulled my hair from the updo, sending it cascading around my shoulders. “You should always wear your hair down,” he said simply.
In seconds, I’d gone from wanting to claw his eyes out to full-blown lust. Damn. I wanted to let him touch and screw me in ways I’d let no other man before.
He reached out, grazing the side of my cheek with the back of his hand. “It makes you look… sinful.”
My clit pulsed and my knees nearly buckled from the sultriness of his voice.
I cleared my throat. “Well, this has been… interesting.” And fucking scary. “Nice seeing you, McKay,” I mumbled, stepping forward to make a hasty exit.
McKay placed a possessive hand on my hip, and my body froze.
“I didn’t dismiss you,” he said with a hard voice.
My lips pressed into a thin line. “I don’t need permission, McKay.” I pointedly looked down at his hand. “You want that?”
He spread his fingers across my hip, firmly guiding me to him. His eyes lingered on my lips. “Yes. More than I should.”
I swallowed hard. Everything that had come out of his mouth was a hot side of dirty sex.
“I’m still not interested.”
He bent down close. “Liar,” he breathed huskily in my ear, his mouth skirting around the lobe.
“I don’t mix sex and business.” I pursed my lips. “And more importantly, I don’t like you.”
He slightly edged forward, squeezing my hip. “Another lie.” He pulled away from my ear and winked at me. “Besides, what does liking me have to do with us fucking?” He actually smirked as if he found me mildly amusing. “Angry sex is the best type of fucking, sweetness.”
I swatted his hand. “Behave, McKay.”
His muscular arm encircled my waist, bringing our upper bodies together. His hand threaded through my long hair. “I don’t know shit about behaving.”
I struggled to break his embrace. “Don’t,” I said shakily.
He held my face while intently staring at me. “Why are you afraid of me?”
“Let go of me,” I snapped.
He released his hold—not because I’d asked him to, but because he wanted to. Gathering my composure, I walked away, and then I stopped, turning to stare at him. I knew I should have kept going, but it wasn’t in my nature to tuck my tail and run, even when it was in my best interest.
“Just for the record, I’m not afraid of you, McKay.”
His confident smile called me a liar.
I was done with the cloak-and-dagger routine and decided to lay my cards on the table. “I’m cautious about your motivation. Nothing about you is straightforward. Everything is smoke and mirrors.” With my heart pumping, I was raring for a fight. “Yes, I’m attracted to you, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to rip off my panties and yell, ‘Come and get it.’ You’re going to have to work fucking hard for that shit to happen.”
McKay leveled his gaze on me.
I resumed. “You’re an arrogant prick. I get it. You’re a sexier-than-thou chick magnet, but it doesn’t mean you have to be so cold about our business quagmire either.”
He arched a brow. “Meaning?”
“One, you hung up on me yesterday, all rude-like. Two, you keep flexing your muscles as though I’m your prison yard bitch.”
The vein along his jaw pulsed. “Exactly what do you want from me, Sinthia?”
My fists tightened. “I want out of our contract.”
His eyes were blazing and his lips pressed into a thin line. It was a look of fury I’d never seen on his face before.
“Try again,” he said.
I refused to let him intimidate me. With my chin tilted at a stubborn angle, I held my ground. “Everything is negotiable, so let’s negotiate.”
Raising a black brow, he stated, “You have nothing to negotiate with.”
I sensed his anger simmering just below the surface.
“I’m the talent and the designer, so I have plenty to negotiate with. If I walk, you’re left with nothing.”
“I call bullshit on that threat. You’d never walk.”
Damn, he called me on my bluff.
I turned my head, unable to meet his taunting gray gaze.
He continued. “And if you do, I won’t even think twice about destroying your ass and taking everything you have, including your name. Next.”
Fucking asshole.
I forced myself to look at him again. “Next, what?”
“What else are you willing to negotiate with?” He sensually looked me up and down.
My breath caught in my throat as I blinked hard. “Not going to happen. I’m not a whore.”
“Never said you were.”
I tightly closed my eyes to block the sight of his hateful presence. “You didn’t have to say shit. That crazy wild look in your eyes says it all, McKay.”
“I make you uneasy,” he stated matter-of-factly.
I opened my eyes. Hell yes. “Not even close,” I lied.
He was the only man I’d met who could make me jumpy, like some high school virgin, and I didn’t know why. I knew men. I collected them like trophies and threw them away, but McKay wasn’t a man I could play with like a Ken doll and toss aside. He was the motherfucking rugged and raw real deal. I couldn’t manipulate him with the flutter of my eyelashes, and this made me fucking uncomfortable.
He gave me a calculating look. “Come here.” He kept his voice low and soft but left no room to doubt that he’d issued a command.
I placed my fingers on my hips. “I’m not a dog. Don’t bark at me like that.”
McKay watched me with those devastating gray eyes, his expression giving away nothing. “If you’re scared, it’s understandable.” He widened his stance. “But I don’t bite.”
An image of me stripped down with him nipping and biting my inner thighs flashed through my head. He smiled as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.
“Unless you enjoy getting bitten.” His lips twisted into a smirk. “Then I’m so down with that, darling.”
Between clenched teeth, I said, “Why does everything that comes out of your mouth sound so scandalous and dirty?” I bit my bottom lip. “You’re nothing like those stiff, smelly old moneybags downstairs.”
He stiffened.
No. He was nothing like them. He was an enigma I needed to solve in order to get the upper hand. Even after scouring the Internet for additional information I could use as leverage a
gainst him, I’d found nothing—no photos, no scandals. I’d only discovered speculation and gossip about his alleged ties to the criminal world—his billion-dollar empire having been built using drug-trafficking, money-laundering, prostitution, and a few other criminally speculated trades. The only bit of information that did pop up over and over was his ownership of The McKay Club, a chain of private invite-only clubs that were essentially playgrounds for the elite, rich, and kinky to indulge in discreet liaisons to allow all their freaky fantasies to come true.
“Because I’m not. I’ve earned my money the hard way, darling.”
I scrunched up my nose. “Yes, I’ve heard. Crime—the unpretty, messy side of Core McKay.”
“I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty, Sinthia,” he spoke with quiet menace. “That’s the big difference between me and all those pretty people downstairs. I fucking earned every dime I have. No one gave me shit. There was no trust fund, no job at some fucking law firm, no Ivy League college. I grew up on the streets, and what I am is nothing compared to those elitist pricks down there. I’m better.” He smiled. “You’re better. And don’t let that attorney boy, Kyle Fillion, make you think otherwise.”
Against my better judgment, I walked toward him. “I don’t care about him or anyone else.” I licked my bottom lip. “I am who I am. Anyone who can’t accept me can kiss my ass,” I finished, standing before him.
“And just for the record”—he leaned down, and his tongue swirled the delicate folds of my ear—“I’d love to kiss and lick every inch of your beautiful ass.”
Holy shit! My breath came more raggedly. My nipples tightened, and warmth pooled between my thighs. What I wouldn’t give to ride him hard and fast.
He trailed a thick finger across my collarbone. My heartbeat pounded in my chest. My knees almost buckled when he pushed down my dress strap. He brushed a hand against my breast, and my nipples stiffened immediately.
The sensations of his touch, his clean masculine scent mingling in the crisp air, and the heat emanating from his body made me heady. He arched down, and his breath skittered along my shoulder before his tongue traced the scar running across it. Losing all sense of self-preservation, I reached up and ran my fingers along the back of his head, sinking my nails into the silky softness of his hair with my fingers splayed against his scalp. I closed my eyes, bowing into him. Our embrace was oddly sensual and too comforting.
This wasn’t right. My eyes opened. Breaking the surreal moment, I released my grip on his head and swallowed nervously. Abruptly, his head snapped up and gray eyes locked on to mine.
Tracing a callous digit over my scar, he asked, “What happened?”
Feeling a little self-conscious, I gave him a stiff smile. “I ran into a stalker with a knife. He won round one. He’s gone. I’m here. So it’s done.” At least I hoped it was.
McKay frowned as he snaked an arm around my waist, pulling me flush against him. “If it’s not, let me know. I can take care of him for you.” The smooth proffer of violence in his sophisticated tone was a cold reminder that underneath his expensive tuxedo was a deadly predator.
“Thanks, but I can take care of myself.”
The way he looked at me told me he begged to differ. I pulled away, straightening my dress. I didn’t need him to run my personal life. No man was going to come in and save the day.
“What you think is going to happen between us will not happen,” I said calmly.
Catching my chin, his gaze bored into mine. “It already has.”
His words sent a shiver through me, but I smiled and tried to make light of my surging emotions. “You wouldn’t know what to do with me, McKay, because I guarantee you, I’m nothing like any woman you’ve ever met.” I was broken and cranky, but right now, I was also confused and horny.
I gasped when he wrapped my hair around his powerful wrist, tugging my head back so our lips almost but not quite touched.
“You mean a woman who hides behind her pain with snarls and quips?”
I tried to pull back, but my hair was still tightly wound about his wrist. He continued to hold me.
“Let me go, McKay.”
He ignored my request and said, “I can see the pain behind your eyes. Let me help you unlock it.”
It took several moments before I could compose myself enough to reply. “You don’t know shit about me.”
“Liar. You’re like an open book to me.” He nipped my bottom lip. “And when you’re ready to get on your knees and beg me to fuck you hard and dirty, I’m going to read you from cover to cover.”
In seconds, I’d gone from anger to arousal. I wanted him to touch and fuck me in ways I’d only dreamt about. Then I knew. I was no match for him. He would consume me, fuck me, and spit me out without a backward glance.
He whispered against my lips, “And I have a lot of dirty little things planned for you, Sinthia.”
My pulse accelerated. My fingers curled and fisted the fabric of his crisp white shirt. His physical magnetism was palpable. I swallowed hard, trying to resist the urge to lick the all-seeing eye tattoo on the side of his neck.
“I want to strip you naked and lay you on my bed.” There was a pause before he said, “I want to tie your legs wide open, so I can see your glistening cunt.” His voice was low and rough when he growled, “I will work you with my tongue until you’re begging and screaming.”
Oh, damn, my kryptonite—dirty talk.
It was so easy to imagine his tongue lapping my womanhood with desire that a deep shiver shook my body.
I tried to get away from his grasp, but he held me close.
“Then I will kiss you.” He cradled the back of my head, easing my mouth to his. The kiss was slow, methodical, and scorching hot. He drew my bottom lip into his mouth, sucking softly, until my insides were undulating with need.
He eased back, and his bright gray eyes searched my face. He gave me one last swipe of his tongue before he bit my lower lip and retreated. “Letting you taste yourself on my lips.”
The truth of McKay’s pull irritated me to no end. Everything about him was overpowering. His touch, voice, and mere presence demanded surrender—my surrender.
“I never mix business and sex,” I said with way more bravado than I actually felt. “It would just create a wickedly bad scene when I decide to dump your ass.”
With any man, it would, but McKay wouldn’t give me a second thought. That was the part that made it so humbling.
“Tough words.” He reached up to run his fingers over my hair, rubbing a strand between his thumb and forefinger. “That only confirms that you want to fuck me just as badly as I want to fuck you.” Steel laced his tone.
“What can I say? I could never resist a man with a big dick and swagger,” I responded before reluctantly stepping out of his grip, “until today.”
His face twitched. I pinched back the urge to caress the light jagged scar running across his eyebrow. At that moment, I knew McKay would be my undoing. No matter how hard I fought the inevitable, I would end up right where he wanted—in his bed.
“I see right through you, McKay, and I have no interest in being the fuck toy you’ll discard when you get bored.”
His eyes narrowed. “Maybe you see right through me because we have a lot in common.” He reached down, trailing a finger along my scar. “Like the fact that neither one of us gives a shit about attachments.” He leaned downward, kissing the scar. “Sounds like a match made in heaven,” he mumbled against my skin.
I reached to push his head away, but somehow, my fingers decided to make a home in his thick hair.
In a sadistic way, he was right. He and I were an ideal match. We didn’t give a shit about relationships or playing house. We had an itch, and we both needed to scratch it. But something in the back of my mind warned me that going down this road with McKay would be disastrous for me emotionally.
From my past mistakes, I’d learned to pay heed to my inner voice. And this smoldering lust between us was already o
ut of control. I was playing with fire, and I knew it. He was a strictly do-not-touch situation, yet I was dancing near the flames, enjoying the fire as it burned my cheeks.
Any chance of disguising my need was shot to hell when he trailed his finger across the cleavage displayed by my low-cut dress. Splaying his hand across my breast, his thumb flicked open the beaded hook holding my dress closed.
My full breasts spilled out. Immediately, my hands went to jerk it shut.
“Don’t,” he ordered, his voice low and rough.
I dropped my hands. Strangely, everything about this man made me want to please and obey.
A smile curved his lips. My heart skipped a beat as I tried to remember how to breathe. He covered my breast with his big hand, moving his palm back and forth over my bare skin.
Willing my mind to function, I stared up at him, blinking. “Oh God,” I breathed. My breasts felt swollen. Desire coiled low in my belly, causing my insides to spasm with need.
“I can’t wait to fuck you and make you mine.”
“I can’t do this, McKay.” But I wanted to.
“You will—sooner rather than later. It’s inevitable,” McKay said, never taking his eyes off of me for a second. “And when you do, I’m going balls deep in you.”
I swallowed hard and bit my bottom lip to hide the emotion that had it trembling. It was too easy to imagine being naked with him, and my pussy flexed in anticipation.
His nostrils flared, and every muscle in his body seemed to tense, straining against his shirt. “But only if you say please.” In one smooth motion, McKay released me. He eased back, and his steel-gray eyes searched my face.
Still reeling from McKay’s erotic words, I couldn’t wrap my brain around losing myself to him. My hands shook while fastening the front of my gown closed.
This was the first time in my life I was scared to death—not of him, but of how out of control his mere presence made me feel. The dirty, naughty things he made me want to do, like fall to my knees and deep-throat him right here in the open.
Not giving me a chance to recover, he pinned me under a hard look. “Go, Sinthia, before I change my mind and order you to get on your knees and suck me dry.” There was hardness in his soft words, daring me to disobey his order.
