by S. J. Maylee
He reached a hand out and caressed her check. “I’m glad you like what you see.” His thumb rubbed over her bottom lip. “Remove those panties and let me look at you.”
Her pulse jumped at his command.
“Now!”
“Right. Sorry, sir.” She watched his expression while she pulled off her panties, hoping for a positive reaction.
There was no change, but he lowered to his knees and pressed a kiss to the top of her pussy. He smiled up at her and swiped his fingers across her wet folds.
Even though she’d been keeping her pussy shaved for a few weeks now, this would be her first time experiencing another’s hand on her naked folds. She knew through her own touch how much more sensitive she was and was eager to know how different it would be with Seth’s touch.
He found her entrance, swirled his fingers in her cream and brought it to her clit. Up and around the hood, his fingers enticed her nub. A tingle of need flashed through her with each brush of his finger. Her knees shook with wanting him.
He leaned in and swiped his tongue over her clit and sucked it into his warm mouth.
“Oh.” She let her head fall back and her fingers dug into his hair. The silky strands had just enough length to allow her to tug. The need for his touch grew with each swipe of his talented tongue.
He pushed two fingers into her pussy. In and out, he rubbed over her sensitive spot on the inside. The wet heat of his sucking mouth and the persistent pressure of his fingers had her catapulting towards ecstasy.
“I’m going to come.”
“Yes, you are.” He sucked harder on her clit.
“Oh,” she screamed and tumbled into the bright lights of an orgasm.
He continued to pull on her clit and his fingers pulsed into her pussy, helping her orgasm to hit her again and again. Her legs started to give out and he picked her up and set her on the bed.
“Thank you, Seth … that felt so good.” Her arms reached directly over her head, touching the wall, and her knees fell wide open.
She watched him tear the condom wrapper, sheath his hard cock, and a moment later he settled between her thighs. “I’ve been dreaming about restraining you.” He stroked her outstretched arms.
“You have?” It turned her on to know he’d been thinking about her. “I promise not to move them, sir,” she said in her best submissive manner.
He growled. “You’re a dream.” His lips came within a breath of hers. “Now, tell me what you’ve been wanting.”
“I’ve been thinking about you claiming me.”
He lifted himself a bit and his cock nudged her entrance. “I’d bet it wasn’t in this room though. Where were we in that naughty mind of yours?” He pulled at her ear lobe with his lips.
She whimpered with want. “No, it wasn’t this room. It was my office. I dreamed you’d taken me right on my desk.”
His cock pulsed against her pussy and his mouth pressed against hers. His tongue licked at her lips and demanded entrance. She opened her mouth, eager to slide her tongue across his. The way their tongues stroked and danced made her melt. She pulled her legs up and shifted her pelvis, searching for more contact with his cock. He slipped in the wetness of her pussy.
“I have no problem making that dream come true.” He nibbled on her neck. “I’ll lay you flat on your desk and take you over and over.”
She needed his cock in her and filling her now. Thankfully, he didn’t make her wait. An inch at a time he stretched her. Each stroke spread her and gave her pleasure, becoming stronger and stronger. She reached her arms further above her, willingly submitting her body. His hand cupped her breast and pulled hard on the nipple. His warm mouth found the other. First, he sucked and then his teeth scraped against her flesh, sending a pulse directly to her pussy.
She lowered her hands, wanting to pull his head closer to her breast.
A sharp sting lit her nipple on fire and his teeth scraped over her flesh as he let go.
“Ouch!”
“Put your hands back above your head.”
Heat flushed through her body and she fixed her mistake. She pressed her fingertips against the wall and snuck a peak at Seth, afraid to see his anger.
“Very good.” He licked her aching nipple. “Next time, I’ll remember to bring restraints.”
“I’d like that.” Moist heat blanketed her pussy and she fought the urge to move.
Next time.
She hadn’t planned for a next time, but was now eager to change her plans. She needed to know how he’d restrain her, needed him to take her on her desk.
“I do like seeing your willing submission.” He lowered his head and licked her other nipple.
Her lids lowered a little and she took a calming breath. She wanted this feeling to last.
“Keep looking at me,” he demanded and pulled a little on her ass, shifting her position slightly. The next stroke of his rigid cock hit the spot and her orgasm readied to break free.
“Oh, sir, that feels so good.” She moaned. “Please do that again.”
“I have no intention of stopping.” He claimed her mouth and her pussy again and again.
His tongue and cock stroked her up and over the edge. The spark of her orgasm shot out first from her center and reached out in a flash over her entire body. He continued his strokes, only stronger than before. Each time he entered her, little aftershocks of pleasure pulsed to life.
A moment later, he shouted out. A few more long strokes and he relaxed over her, blanketing her with his warmth.
She wrapped her arms around him and he squeezed her back. When his head came up, his lips covered hers, slow and tender. Soft kisses and languid sweeps of his tongue wrapped her in a warm glow. Her heart ached to know more, to experience more. One night with Seth would not be enough.
****
Ivy practically skipped to work Monday morning. She admired the pink and yellow flowers outside the coffee shop, but she didn’t stop. She was eager to get to work and make it through her day.
Seth would be back from New York this afternoon. They had dinner plans and he asked to pick her up at her office. She imagined he intended to take her on her desk and she was happy to please him. The sky even seemed bluer to her today. Well, what she could see through the chunks of dark ominous clouds.
A block from the office, the clouds tipped their scale from silent to pouring. Heavy beads of rain drenched her. She hoped Candy had picked up her dry cleaning. Clients tended not to trust an event planner that looked like a wet rat. She bound up the stairs and into her lobby.
“You got wet.”
Ivy narrowed her eyes at Candy and shook the water from her hands. “Could you get me a towel?”
“Sure, that’d probably be a little more helpful.”
“Thanks.” She’d added a full bathroom to her office last year. One of the best changes she’d made to the space. It had come in handy on more than one occasion.
Candy handed her a towel. “I picked up your dry cleaning this morning, too. It’s in your bathroom if you want to change.”
“Thanks, Candy. I’ll definitely change.” Maybe the day wasn’t going to be horrible after all. She rubbed her hair first, down her arms and legs and then took off her shoes. She wiped the puddle on the floor and stood to find Candy watching her.
“You might want to change now. You have a new client coming in thirty minutes.”
“Really?” she said as she made her way to her bathroom.
“The call came in first thing this morning. It’s for a CPA firm. They want to plan a customer dinner party for next month.”
“Can you pull the site quotes we have?” Once in the bathroom, she looked at the pale pink suit hanging in the dry cleaners bag and figured the jewelry she had on would work just fine.
“Done. They’re sitting on your desk.”
“Thanks, Candy.”
“Don’t thank me yet.”
“What is it?” When Candy didn’t say anything, “Spit it out, I need
to change.”
“I did the black list check this morning.”
Ivy stopped moving. “You found a match. You hardly ever find a match.”
“It’s Seth.”
Ivy pinched her eyes closed and grabbed the edge of the vanity. When she first put together the criteria for the black list, she’d cast the net quite wide. Maybe she could forgive his involvement.
“He wasn’t just an investor. He was on the board of the company that owned your dad’s firm.”
Ivy slid to the floor and squeezed her eyes shut. She’d give anything to un-hear what Candy had found. She gasped for a breath, but it tasted stale as a confusing swirl of emotions rushed through her.
Candy sat beside her and gave her a bear hug. The normally comforting action did nothing to melt the tundra taking over her heart. The room did slow its wretched spinning, but the ugly reality sank in like a cement block.
“I’m sorry I ran this one late. I never do that.”
“I know, Candy. It’s okay.” Tears streamed down her face and she stared at the wall. Candy gave her another squeeze. She needed to push her feelings aside. There was work to be done. “Please tell me you ran the company coming this morning.”
“I did and they’re all clear.”
“Okay.” She looked up and the poor girl looked horrified. “This isn’t your fault.”
“I know, but—”
“Nope, not your fault.” She shook her head. She wasn’t going to have Candy feel bad for one second for what those sharks did. She needed to change. “Help me up, would you?”
“Sure.” The sadness lifted from Candy’s face as she helped Ivy stand.
“Now go and make sure the lobby’s ready to receive. Make a fresh pot of coffee and call Seth’s office to cancel our dinner for tonight.”
“Okay. I’m sorry, again.”
“Nothing doing. We are not attached. All you’ve done is change our dinner plans. Now, go so I can get ready.” She wished she could believe her lie. At least it seemed to make Candy feel better.
She pulled off the rest of her wet clothes. For a minute, she stood naked in the middle of her beautiful bathroom and let the tears fall. A swipe to her cheeks and she pushed the pain away. She couldn’t spend any more time thinking on it, now. The matter was finished. Her new client would be here soon and her only leverage against her father’s perpetrators was her own success.
The shower served its purpose. She didn’t let it pull her in for the crying session she craved. It did help her clean the filth that had suddenly coated her body. With precision, she dried off, got dressed, and pulled her hair up and into a bun.
One step into her office and she noticed the rays of sunshine streaming through her window. She made her way across the room, working with each step to ignore the desk where Seth would never take her like she’d dreamed. The sky no longer held any clouds. They’d done their damage, dumped their mess on everyone and went on their way.
Her desire to throw something or slam a door would do her no good. It might feel good, but it wouldn’t help her father. The facts of her life were pretty simple. Ivy needed to keep her business growing so she could continue to pay for his care.
Her intercom chirped, their code for clients in the lobby.
She tightened her fists and pushed back her shoulders. She’d pull in this client and the next. They didn’t need a handout from greedy corporations. The Reed family could take care of themselves. She turned on her heels, determined to put another client under contract, the perfect cure for the day.
Ivy walked into the lobby and recognized the new client. “Brad, hi.”
Chapter Four
Seth walked into the restaurant and chuckled when the hostess greeted him with her usual smile. She was obviously happy to see him alone again, but he wasn’t. He’d hoped to have Ivy with him. Why had she cancelled their dinner? Her assistant hadn’t given a reason and now Ivy wasn’t answering his calls.
The next time he saw her, he’d have to warm her ass and remind her what proper communication looked like. His cock lengthened at the thought of her ass red from his hand. He hadn’t spoken to her all day and he missed her.
Table after table had couples. It seemed, this Monday night everyone had found their matches. At the next table he passed, he found his friend, Brad. He stopped to say hello.
“Hi, Brad. We need to stop meeting like this.”
“I know. It’s like déjà vu, but on the other foot.”
He looked to Brad’s right and there she sat. “Good evening, Ivy.”
“She’s helping me with our customer dinner. You were right about her. She’s a wiz.”
Ivy wasn’t making eye contact. Her fingers kept her busy with a crumb on the table.
“She sure is.” He pushed his feet into the floor to stop him from pulling her out of the booth and away from Brad. “Ivy, can I talk to you for a minute?”
“We’re quite busy. Call Candy tomorrow and try and schedule something.”
He guessed he could try, not that he’d get anywhere. A pulling sensation nudged at his gut and his ribs squeezed his chest tight.
“Go ahead, Ivy,” Brad said. “It will give me a chance to call the office and get your questions answered.”
She stared at Brad for a long minute and finally inched her way out of the booth.
The hostess stood aside while he and Ivy settled at his usual table. “Can I get you anything?”
“Not now. I’ll let you know when I’m ready to order.”
As soon as the hostess left, he reached for her hand, but she pulled it from his reach.
“What is it, Ivy? Why are you shutting me out?”
“I have a question for you, Mr. Marsh.” She pushed back her shoulders and looked him directly in the eyes. “When did you stop caring about your employees? Was it before or after you bought the speedster?”
“What are you getting at? My companies offer some of the most attractive compensation and benefit packages in the city.”
“Paying a wage they deserve doesn’t excuse you from your responsibilities.” She took a deep breath. “Do you prefer the line that your company is so big you can’t possibly know all the ruthless decisions your people make on your behalf? Oh, wait, I got it … It’s just business. It’s not personal.”
“This is ridiculous. Stop throwing accusations and be honest with me.” He grabbed hold of her hand and squeezed. “You’re not business to me, Ivy.”
“You’re wrong there, as well, Mr. Marsh. We won’t be working together, not anymore.” Her eyes squinted a little and a tear trickled down her cheek. “I’m sure you won’t have any problems filling your dance card.”
She yanked her hand from his and walked away.
To say he was taken off guard by her accusations was an understatement. He couldn’t think of a single reason why she’d accuse him of such cruelty. A flick of his fingers caused the empty glass nearest his hand to fall over and clink against the utensils.
There was a time in his life when he was on several boards. He couldn’t tell you much about their daily operations. It was one of the reasons he took one over and sold much of what he owned in the others.
Of course, he’d never stand by a company who didn’t take care of their staff. At the first company he took over, he fired one of the directors for even attempting such tactics. The man was changing purchase orders to sub-par materials in an attempt to save the company money. The company had just been through a huge loss, one of the reasons they were open to his takeover.
At the time, he’d tasked his lawyers to research the issues. They’d found no foul play–– just shoddy work and the people responsible had been let go. His chest tightened further and a cool sweat broke out across his skin. Could Ivy’s dad have worked for that company?
“Can I get you something to drink?”
Seth looked up to find the hostess back and eager to help him. “No, I’ve lost my appetite.” He got up from the table, determined to find o
ut at once if any of his companies were involved.
He walked past Ivy and Brad’s table and noticed how good the pair looked together. An ache settled in the middle of his chest. Brad was a better fit for Ivy. Their careers were just taking off and Brad didn’t have any baggage to bring into the relationship.
Seth feared the damage done was irrevocable. He might not be able to get the girl back. The burning in his heart grew deeper, but he couldn’t just walk away. She deserved more than that. They both deserved the truth. He’d find it. He’d do it for her. If there was a wrong done to her family, he was damn sure going to make sure it was righted.
****
A week later, Ivy stormed into her apartment and flung her bags to the couch. Maybe escorting her father to his therapy appointment wasn’t the best idea. She couldn’t stand seeing her father in pain. Even if he was thrilled with his session, she hated every minute. He didn’t deserve this life. He should be enjoying retirement, traveling with her mom, not stuck in a chair and struggling with ramps.
It didn’t help she was thinking nonstop about Seth. She settled back on the couch and pinched the bridge of her nose. She missed the ease of their conversations. In the few weeks she’d known him, he’d become a comfort to her, a safe place, and now it was gone. Once again, she was alone.
She tried to reconsider her decision, but after seeing her dad today, the guilt of the thought ate away any happiness it could bring.
Her phone rang out in the tone for her parent’s house. She found her phone in her purse’s side pocket. “Hi, is everything okay?”
“I’m fine, but something interesting just arrived by certified mail. Your mom has scanned and emailed it to you.”
“Hmm, okay, hold on.” She dug out her laptop. A couple minutes later, she stared at a settlement document. “What is this?”
“I’m not entirely certain. I’ve talked to a few of the guys and no one knows of a new law suit, but we all got this letter. Look at the last page.”
“That’s the amount we originally asked for.”
“It sure is, plus the next line lists the interest they’ll pay.”
