“Consider this fair warning,” I breathed into her hair… her neck. “When this wedding is over, I’m taking you with me, back up to the cabin.” I worked my fingers along the tiny bones of her spine and the first eager drops of fluid seeped from my cock. I stopped my hands in the hollow of her back, just above the curve of her ass. I was throbbing, trapped between the heat of our bodies. “Last time was only a taste,” I whispered. “Nothing compared to the plans I have for you… for us…”
She wrapped her arms around my neck and pressed her breasts against my chest. Even through our clothes, I could feel the hard nubs of her nipples. Her eyes were dark, dilated… I knew she was as wet and ready underneath her prim black skirt, as I was… straining against my zipper. The only thing she wore that broke the severity of her serving uniform was a tiny white apron with a delicate lace edging. For a brief second, I allowed myself the image of her… wearing only that…
“I’ve got to take the cake in now,” she said, breathlessly, pushing at my hands. “I’ve got to go… I can’t wait…”
“Neither can I,” I said, reluctantly letting her go. “But I should get back out there too. Ben’s waiting for me. And Sutton’s here,” I said darkly, “though I can’t figure why. He’s got no connection that I know of, to the bride or the groom.”
“Did he back down?” she asked, her hand on my arm. I could feel her fingers gripping tight. “When you told him you’ll walk if he doesn’t cooperate?” Her eyes were brilliant, intense.
I swept a strand of soft brown hair out of her eyes. “He’s weakening,” I said. “He knows he’s cornered and there’s no way out but the truth.” I shook my head. “He can make things right and keep his head above water. Or he can keep on heading for disaster. I’ve made his choices clear enough.”
“And if he refuses?”
I smiled. “I haven’t shown my whole hand. Not yet. I hope he won’t take it that far, but my lawyers have all the papers ready. He fucks up one last time and I’ll sign them.”
“And give up your own company? It isn’t right, Chase. For him to have that kind of power.”
I took her back into my arms and inhaled her sweet, warm scent. She was soft, delicious, curving perfectly to fit the hard angles of my body. I took a long, deep breath and felt my whole heart expand inside my chest. “He has no real power,” I said, looking into her eyes. “I started one company… I can always start another.
I have the only thing I need, right here. I love you, Emi. I can reinvent myself, my whole life a hundred times over, as long as I have you next to me. Whatever else I lose is a small price to pay for everything I’ve gained…”
She leaned in one last time, taking my face in her hands and kissing me hard. “I do love you, Chase,” she said, passionately. Her body radiated heat and her eyes were shining. She bit into her lip, drawing my eyes, and I felt my whole body respond.
“Meet me in twenty minutes,” she said, smiling. “Up in the choir loft. I have a surprise…
Don’t keep me waiting…”
43
Emily
And he didn’t.
Nineteen minutes later, I saw his dark head appear as he climbed the curving staircase. It was dark in the loft, exactly the way I wanted it. Over the balcony’s edge, guests mingled with each other and the champagne was flowing freely. I’d left Reese in charge, with a conspiratorial smile, and climbed up here to wait. Chase had arrived right on cue.
I shivered with excitement as he took me in his arms. I wanted to take this chance all for ourselves… I wanted to give in to the desire that was building in my veins, pulsing between my legs. I felt the excitement of the game, knew the thrill of getting caught. It heated my blood until I thought, when he kissed me, I might come just from that…
“Wait,” I whispered against his mouth, forcing down my rising excitement, pushing against his chest with my palms. “We aren’t alone… I need you to wait, and listen…”
My eyes adjusted to the darkness and I could see the question in his eyes. But a second later, we both turned, watching from our shadowed doorway as another couple reached the top of the stairs. Sutton emerged first, his breathing giving away his excitement. He sucked air through his teeth as he caught the girl’s hand and pulled her hard, into his arms. His hands groped at her body as he buried his face in her neck, in her cleavage. His voice was ragged as he spoke, and I felt Chase’s hand tighten painfully on mine.
“Lean over the balcony, sweetheart,” he whispered harshly, “and spread those baby-sweet thighs for me.” The distinct sound of a zipper cut the air. “We can watch the others from here… while I fuck you against the railing.” He let his pants fall and focused on positioning her. She let him push her forward and move her legs apart. Then he pushed the back of her black skirt up and pulled at her underthings.
“It’s been a fucking long time since I’ve had me a virgin taste of sweet fifteen, baby,” he growled, his hand moving roughly on his cock. “No high school prick for your first time, honey. You’re gonna get a real man.” He poised himself behind her, bracing his legs. “You have no idea what I can do for you…”
“You’re the one with no fucking clue, you twisted shit…” Chase let go of my hand and was next to Sutton in three long strides. He jerked him by the arm, spinning him, as Sutton struggled to cover himself. Amelia was ready at the switch, flooding the loft with light. Tam turned around gracefully, poised, smoothing her rumpled clothes back into place. But Chase saw only Sutton. He had gripped the man’s jacket so tightly around his throat, that his face was turning purple. Sutton had lost his grip on his pants and they slipped down, exposing his now limp dick.
“You goddamned worthless little prick,” Chase ground out. I lunged forward to grab at his arm, as he balled one huge hand into a fist. “So help me, one fucking word out of you and I’ll turn you into something no woman will ever…”
“Stop, Chase… please,” I pleaded, pulling at his arm. His muscles were rock hard under my hands. “He isn’t worth it, I promise you,” I said softly, feeling his grip begin to loosen. “And this isn’t exactly what you think.”
He let go abruptly, disgust evident on his face. Sutton wasted no time pulling his clothes up to cover himself. He stood hunched, his eyes darting. I pulled Chase a few steps back, still holding onto him.
“Tam looks young but she’s legal age, I promise you,” I explained fast. “Sutton just assumed like everyone does, that she wasn’t.” I felt half the tension in Chase’s arm let go as I went on. “He hit on her once before, the night we met… at that very first party. She just walked away from him that night, without ever bothering to set him straight.” I glanced around, catching the looks around the room. “We just wondered what might happen… if he thought he had a second chance…”
“You fucking set me up…,” Sutton said, his mouth hanging slack.
“And you thought you were about to steal the virginity of a fucking fifteen year old kid,” Chase shot back furiously. “Even I didn’t think you were capable of shit like this.”
“And it’s a crime, Sutton,” Amelia said coolly. “A very punishable one.
It doesn’t matter who she is, or how old. It only matters that you believed she was too young to consent, and you were willing and ready to take her anyway. And I’m afraid we’re all witnesses…”
She picked up a file folder from the chair behind her and waved it gently back and forth. “Not to mention I’ve got over a dozen signatures right here. Women you used and then tried to pay off. They all did a little investigating on their own… and they found out about the wagers, Sutton… that you were at the heart of it. They’re willing to let the others off the hook, just not you.” She looked at him and smiled darkly, clearly enjoying herself. “Secrets never stay secret… and there’s a hell of a lot of strength in numbers…”
“You did set him up,” Chase said, turning to look down at me. I didn’t breathe until I saw the corners of his mouth twitch. His dark eyes glittered an
d I could feel his pleasure. “Were you so sure my methods were going to fail?”
“I couldn’t be more proud to be your sister, Chris, but backup never hurts,” Amelia interjected. Tam went over to her and they linked arms. “And I’ll be getting an A in my journalism class,” she quipped. “No names… of course.”
“And I couldn’t let you walk away from your half of the company,” I added. “Not without trying to do something. I wanted you to have another option.”
“I always did,” he said smoothly, looking at Sutton’s stricken face. “Only one contract had me signing away my interest in Envisager. The lawyers drew up another set as well, because I suspected all along that you’d never meet my demands. And even if you’d tried, I knew it would never last. I’ve decided I’m not walking away from anything. And I won’t share a company with a man I can’t trust.” He stared hard, his gaze unwavering. Although they were almost the same height, Sutton looked smaller, almost fragile next to Chase. “The second set is for you to sign.
All ties between us will be legally broken. Maybe you’ll stay out of jail… but only at a price. You’ll donate the vast majority of your settlement,” he said calmly. “I’ll make fucking sure that you do.
What you make of your life from here is your own choice and your own responsibility. But it’s over, Sutton. Our partnership in the company, the game, the competition… It’s all over, once and for all.
I know what I want, for the rest of my life,” he said, reaching out to me, pulling me close.
“And she’s right here.”
44
Chase
Ben led Sutton down the stairs. He was a beaten man at last. Somewhere inside, I still hoped he might change, but then he was no longer my concern. I’d cleared my own troubled conscience. Sutton had his own peace to make…
“So it really made no difference to you,” Emily asked, “whether you left Envisager… or he did?” We were finally alone. My sister and our brave Tammy had followed shortly after the others. Emily shut off the glaring overhead lights and slipped her hand into mine.
“It mattered,” I admitted. “Just not enough to let it control my choices.
I’ve lived my whole life… working, struggling, succeeding… all to earn my father’s approval. To earn a moment of his affection.” I shook my head, gathering her softness to me, savoring the feel of her against my chest. “I never thought I’d feel this way, but none of that even matters anymore. He can love me… or he cannot. But I refuse to let his choices influence who I am anymore. Competition… success… they aren’t the same thing as love. I can see that now…
In some ways, it might have been a relief to have thrown it all away, to just start all over. But I suppose it’s really better this way.”
“Sutton would have destroyed Envisager, sooner or later,” she agreed. “But you’ll make it a force for good in the world. You have the resources and the compassion to make a real difference in women’s lives.”
“And what about you, Emi?” I asked, cradling her heart-shaped face in my hands. “No second thoughts about being with a man like me….? I started out not so very different from Sutton, you know.” I sighed, thinking back. “I was spoiled, selfish… looking for excitement, not for love.”
“And now?” she asked, looking up at me with a confident smile. She put a tiny fingertip to my chin and I felt that single gesture of trust and love echo throughout my entire body. “Who are you now, Chase?” she asked.
“A man who’s found his purpose, his love… his soulmate,” I answered, honestly. “A decade ago, those words meant nothing to me. Now I can see that intimacy is the greatest, most exciting, most irresistible challenge of all…
I knew when we first met, that I could never be satisfied with anything less than everything.
I bent down, kissing her slowly, savoring the warmth of her lips and the taste of her mouth. “There’s no more looking back, Emi, and wishing I’d made the right decision…” I ran my hands softly over her shoulders, and the curve of her back. When I reached the sweet curves of her ass, the spark between us became flame. “I’m making it now,” I said, my voice full of emotion. “I’m not a gentleman, sweetheart,” I said, pressing the hard length of my body demandingly to hers.“ And maybe I never will be. But I will love you the rest of my life…
I’ll prove it with every word, every action… every touch, Emi. I promise you that.
And now… tonight… is only the beginning…
Those simple words released something inside us both…
The music still played below us and the muffled voices of the guests rose upwards. But in seconds, she had my shirt open to the waist and her mouth was moving downwards in a warm wet trail.
“There must still be a hundred people down there,” I protested. Then she ran her hands up over the enormous outline of my cock and reached for my zipper.
“That just means they’re not up here,” she answered huskily. Her fingers were working their way steadily through the layers of clothing that separated us. I groaned out loud as she freed me. Nearly a foot of hard, hot cock stood throbbing, waiting… seeking the warmth of her body. “We should take this home,” I said thinly, as need struggled to override my best intentions. “I want you naked and in bed… and all to myself…”
“Are you afraid I might seduce you in public,” she breathed against my belly, driving me well beyond mad. “Do you think you could stand the wait to get home?” she asked deliberately, running her lips over my slick, wet head, letting me feel her words as well as hear them. “Because I can’t, Chase. I can’t…
I want you, right here… right now…,” she whispered wickedly, licking the underside of my cock with feathery flicks. “And this time I’m not letting go until I have you…
Just promise me you won’t come… not until all of this…,” she wrapped her hands around my rod, holding it tight, right next to her mouth, “is buried between my legs.” She licked me and my whole body turned rigid. “I demand complete satisfaction,” she said, “and you’re going to give it to me…”
“What can I say…?” I breathed, letting my head fall back, surrendering to her sweet dominance. She engulfed me in a swirl of liquid heat, punishing and demanding… and rewarding…
“you’ve caught me.”
45
Emily
The last dizzying surges slowly gave way to warm, wet waves. The first morning light was just beginning to break, and the birds outside the window just starting to sing. My heartbeat was still too fast, but my breathing was finally coming slower. I reached down to feel his thick, dark hair and ran my fingers through it. He lifted his head and smiled at me, his lips wet from my climax. He rested his head warmly against the inside of my thigh, and I smiled back, satisfied… at least for now…
“You’ll spoil me rotten if you wake me up like this every morning,” I said, caressing his shoulders and pulling a deep, steadying breath. His bed was soft, luxuriously warm from the heat of our bodies. He moved up alongside me until he could rest his head on my breast, letting his fingers continue to swirl slow circles down below. His mouth had only made me even needier and he knew it. He traced a finger lazily through my damp curls and teased the very tip… in and out of my swollen pussy.
“I can’t think of anything I’d enjoy more,” he answered. “Ben has the business on track for now. And I’m only a phone call away if he needs me. I haven’t taken time off since Envisager began…” He pushed his fingers a little deeper, making me lift my hips and push too. “Stay with me, here at the cabin… I can hire someone to fill in for you at the bakery, even provide someone to stay with your grandmother, if you like.” He looked into my eyes with his dark, soulful ones. “I want you all for myself…”
I pushed his hair back and smiled into the calm, grey sea of his beautiful eyes. The love between us met in that gaze, like something real, tangible… something that could be held and protected. Tears pricked at the back of my eyes and slid, salty, down the
back of my throat. In the back of my mind, I remembered his words… How the salt makes the sweet almost more than we can bear…
“Gran’s fine,” I said, with difficulty. “She’s going to be spending a lot more time with May these days. And Henry too, her new gentleman friend.” I thought back to the glow on her sweet, wrinkled face, blinking at the depth and mystery of the human heart. “She told me things about herself I never knew… never understood before. How she lost the love of her life once, a long time ago. She told me she didn’t want me to ever have to live with that kind of regret.
I love you, Chase. And there’s nothing I’d regret more than to wake up without you. I’ll stay for as long as you want me.” He shifted, his big hands spanning my hips. “You’ve brought me love and excitement, but more than that. You have the kindest heart I’ve ever known. And you’ve helped me to find myself… to explore and learn about who I am and what I want in my life. In a way, you’ve set me free.”
“And you’re the only challenge I’ll ever need… ever want,” he said, lifting me up to settle me on top of him. I straddled his hips and caught his heavy cock in my hands, rubbing myself sensuously against him. He’d taken me hard and fast, slow and gentle throughout the long night. But it only seemed to make all our desires grow even more powerful. I could see the aching need in his face as he looked up at me. His eyes lingered greedily over my bare breasts, my hardening nipples… my belly… And my core clenched, making impatient demands of its own.
I lifted up on my knees and let myself slide slowly down onto his shaft, spasming along its towering length. We held our breath together until my clit finally touched his base. I was stretched tight… deliciously tight and wavered, impaled, my heart pounding in my pussy. I could see in his eyes that he felt every beat against his cock. We held still, holding back only until the need in us both stripped the last of our control. There was only that single heartbeat and fast shallow breath until…
The Baby Pact Page 31
