by Ali Parker
“Someone had an accident,” he commented.
The others were looking at me as I leaned forward and put my coffee down on the table. “It wasn’t an accident,” I said. I looked down the table at Ryder, who was watching me with a passive expression. I cleared my throat. “Dani, I’m glad you’re here. I think I have information you could use in finding Hyde’s killer.”
This caught her attention. She dropped the protective wall she had up and uncrossed her ankles to lean forward. Ryder’s hand slid down her back to rest on her ass. “Tell us,” he said.
“I stopped at that coffee shop down the street. When I was in line, this smoke show of a woman came in behind me and started chatting me up—”
“I don’t see how you getting hit on by a hot chick is going to help get justice for Hyde,” Derek drawled from his seat across from me. He lifted his beer to his lips. By the glazed look in his eyes, I could tell he was already drunk. “You’ve been enough of an ass already. No need to go above and beyond with stories of your most recent slut.”
“Enough,” I growled. “Just listen to me. She tried to get me to leave with her. I shot her down. She was persistent. Eventually, she caved and left, but she called me by name when she left the coffee shop. I ran after her when I realized that at no point during the conversation had I told her my name.”
Dani was the only one looking at me like she understood. The others all had blank expressions on their faces and were waiting for me to clarify. Dani did for me. “You think she tried to lure you out of there?”
“Yes,” I said.
Axel leaned down and plucked a beer from a cooler beside his chair that I hadn’t noticed. He tossed it to me across the table. I popped the tab and drank thankfully. I needed the booze more than the coffee after my altercation with the black-haired vixen.
“And I’d bet she did the same thing to Hyde, which is how he ended up in those woods.”
Dani got off Ryder’s lap and stood. “I’ve been trying to piece that part of it together myself. At first, I assumed he was taken there by force. But there were no signs he had been subdued. He was tricked into following someone there. Your new coffee shop admirer, I would assume.”
“A woman working with the Black Hearts?” Caleb chimed in. “Now that’s unheard of.”
“But not impossible,” Ryder said. “Maybe they’re paying her off to help them.”
I shook my head. “No way. She’s under no man’s thumb. If I had to take a guess, I would say she’s the one behind this. I felt like she was boxing me in the whole time.”
Jax clapped me on the back. “It’s been a rough day, man. A rough fucking day. You’re sure you’re remembering it right? I mean, what could a woman have said that would—”
“Every word out of her mouth felt like a threat. She had me right where she wanted me. If I had gone with her, you would be finding my body next. There’s no doubt in my mind.”
Chapter 20
Angela
John opened his office door for me and invited me in. He closed it behind me and motioned for me to take the seat in front of his desk. I sank down into it and found myself staring at the article I had handed in the previous day on online dating. There were red editing marks all over it, and I couldn’t help but feel a rush of anxiety as John moved around the desk and sat down across from me.
“I must admit,” he said, “I’m impressed with your first piece. I know it looks a little rough with all the red, but this was a great step in the right direction for you. We’ll be publishing it in tomorrow’s paper.”
“That’s great,” I said, feeling my cheeks ache as I forced a fake smile.
“I have your next assignment if you’re ready to hear it.”
“Of course,” I said hopefully. I inched closer to the edge of my chair and clasped my hands together on my knee.
Please be something real, I thought.
“Love your attitude,” John complimented. “Let’s keep it nice and light still. I like your writing voice, and we’ve had a few people write in about how excited they are to read work from our beautiful new columnist.”
I blinked. “Columnist?”
“Yes.”
I narrowed my eyes. “I’m here as a journalist.”
“Why yes, of course, you are, Angela. But like I’ve said, we all have to start somewhere. This is your somewhere. Your readers are eager for more from you.”
“My readers?” I asked.
“It would seem your Cooper name has already earned you some fans.”
I didn’t want fans, and I didn’t want a column. I wanted to report the news. The facts. The things that were happening right now in real life.
“I’m sorry,” I said, uncrossing my legs and leaning forward to rest my elbows on his desk. I saw his eyes dart to the collar of my blouse, which had the top two buttons open. The dick was checking out my cleavage. I cleared my throat, and his eyes snapped up to mine. “I’m really not interested in writing fluff pieces. This kind of content was not in the terms I was hired under.”
John sighed. “I was hoping we wouldn’t have any issues like this, Angela. You’re a beautiful woman, and the paper doesn’t have many of those. At least, not any that look quite like you do. Your name and your history bring a certain readership to our pages that we have been missing out on. What sort of businessman would I be to miss an opportunity like that?”
“A less shallow one,” I retorted.
John chuckled. “I like your spirit, Angela. Let that shine through on your next piece: Dating in the Modern Day and the Impact of Online ‘Hook Up’ Apps.” He slid me a piece of paper with the working title written upon it and some bullet point notes.
“Are you serious?”
“Quite,” John said. “Now hop to it. I want to see those fingers of yours dancing over the keyboard. Chop chop!”
I swept out of his office, whispering very unladylike things under my breath. I slumped down in my chair and opened up a document to begin writing my new fluff piece.
I resented the fact that my name would be associated with such garbage.
At the end of the work day, I found myself feeling absolutely terrible. My gut ached with repulsion over the lackluster article I had pounded out. My heart was sore from missing Sabian. I was angry, embarrassed, and lonely.
I needed Sabian.
I decided to head straight to the mechanic shop on my way home from work. When I parked in the drive, the bay doors were closed, but Sabian’s car was there. It was the only one in the lot, and I hurried from my car to the office door. I pushed it open and was surprised that it wasn’t locked.
I thought that the office was empty until I looked to my right. There, on the couch tucked against the front window, was Sabian. He had his head resting on the back of the sofa, which was basically cradling his neck because he was so tall, and his eyes were closed. His left foot was resting atop his right knee, and his hands were resting across his stomach.
I realized that he was sleeping.
I peered around, wondering why he would let himself fall asleep when the front door was still unlocked. I closed it behind me and locked it, then went and sat down beside him. I reached out and rested a hand on his knee.
He woke with a primal snarl and went for me.
I let out a terrified shriek and pushed myself quickly to the far corner of the sofa.
Sabian’s eyes widened with surprise, and then his features contorted with guilt.
“Ang,” he whispered. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—what are you doing here? What time is it?”
My heart was racing in my chest, and I was out of breath from the scare he had given me. “It’s just after six,” I said. “I wanted to see you.”
“You shouldn’t be here.” He raked his fingers through his hair. I could see the tension in him; in his shoulders, jaw, and the way he sat tensely perched on the edge of the sofa. “I told you I didn’t want you around me right now.”
“And I told you I didn�
�t care.”
He ran one hand down his face and sighed. He closed his eyes and rested his elbows on his knees. I shimmied back beside him until our hips were touching. Then I gathered the nerve to reach out and cup his face in my hands. He opened his eyes and stared into my soul. There was so much agony there that I almost looked away.
“You need to tell me what’s happening,” I whispered.
He went to shake his head, but I held him still.
“Yes,” I said firmly. “Tell me. Let me help you. Whatever this is, you don’t have to carry it by yourself. I’m not as fragile as you think I am. I can handle it.”
“Hyde’s dead.”
“What?”
“Hyde’s dead,” Sabian said again, and his chin trembled. He looked down at his own hands in his lap. “He died on Wednesday, and we buried him on Sunday.”
Every part of me was screaming inside. Sabian’s friend had died almost a whole week ago, and I hadn’t been there for him. I let go of his face and reached out to him. I pulled him to me, and he buried his face in the groove of my shoulder. His arms slipped around my waist, and I could feel the warmth of his breath on the side of my neck.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, burying my left hand in his hair. “Can you tell me what happened?”
He nodded against me, and when he was ready, pulled away and straightened up. His eyes were dry, but his forehead was creased, and the anguish on his face was evident.
“He was murdered. Beaten to death. I’m not going to give you all the details. But we know it was a hit from the Black Hearts. He was targeted and probably lured into the place he was killed. We all have targets on our backs now, Ang. That’s why I didn’t want you around. It’s not because I didn’t want to see you. I just… I couldn’t be responsible for you getting hurt.”
“It’s all right. I understand.”
He ran his hands over his face again, and his almost fully-formed beard whispered against his palms. “It’s all a fucking mess right now.”
“That’s okay. I’m here for you. What can I do?”
He shook his head.
“Stop keeping me at bay.” I pushed his hands down and climbed into his lap. I wrapped my arms around his neck as I straddled him and tried to hug his whole body. I hugged him with my arms and squeezed him with my thighs. “I’m here.”
He leaned back against the sofa and pulled me with him so I was resting upon his chest. “Thank fucking God for you,” he whispered.
I melted into him, crumpling like a wet piece of paper. His hands pressed into the small of my back as his lips met mine in the softest, sweetest kiss I had ever shared with anyone before. It was so gentle, like he was afraid I was going to break; or rather, maybe he was afraid he might shatter.
I clung to his shoulders as our lips parted, and we began kissing in earnest. His tongue caressed mine, and I hurried to find the hem of his shirt with trembling fingers. I rolled it up his stomach and chest, and we broke apart to get the shirt over his shoulders. Once it was off of him, our mouths crashed together once more, and I began working at his belt.
Sabian ran his hands up the back of my shirt and unclipped my bra. His touch wandered across my ribs, and he slipped his fingers beneath the underwire to cup my breasts. I moaned softly as he flicked his thumbs over my nipples. His hands were calloused and warmed and everything my body had been so desperately pining for.
After he ripped my shirt off, I leaned in to devour his neck with kisses and nibbles. He groaned, and the sound sent me over the edge. I kissed his collar bones, his chest, and his shoulders. I let my hands trace every ridge and dip of his muscled body. The heat of his skin beneath my fingers urged me to slip my hands into the waistband of his jeans.
I felt him hard and stiff and ready for me.
I unzipped his jeans and pulled him free. Sabian shifted on the sofa, and the leather creaked beneath us. I slid off his lap and went to my knees in front of him. I pushed his legs apart and slipped between them. The inside of his thighs pressed against my shoulders as I took his cock in my hand and swirled my tongue over the tip of him. His stomach pulled inwards at the sensation, and I smiled to myself before sealing my lips around him and easing him into my mouth.
I used my tongue along his shaft as I swallowed him to the hilt. He pressed into the back of my throat, and I watched him as his head fell back against the sofa and his eyes closed.
I worshipped him in a way I had never done. I fondled his testicles and bobbed up and down on his cock like a woman possessed by a need she couldn’t define.
Soon, he was reaching for me. “Enough of that,” he growled. “I’m going to lose it.”
I tried to mumble good through my mouthful of his cock. He laughed at me, and it was the first time I had seen him smile a genuine smile in a week.
I kept sucking until he gripped the sides of the sofa beside him and tensed as warm lashes of salty semen gushed into the back of my throat.
I leaned back and wiped the corners of my mouth with my fingers.
Sabian leaned forward and grabbed my wrists to pull me up to my feet. Then he undid my jeans and shimmied them down my hips, over my knees, and down my calves. I stepped out of them and stood before him in my silky purple panties, embellished with a single rhinestone and a pretty bow. Sabian took my hips in his hands and guided me back onto his lap.
“Your turn,” he said, his voice deep and husky and dripping with sex.
Chapter 21
Sabian
Angela’s body was a sight for sore eyes. Her skin was bronzed from the summer sun, and gold jewelry glittered around her throat, wrists, and at her ears. After pulling her onto my lap, I gripped her ass, which had just the right amount of squish for a man like me.
She giggled and dipped her head down to me to kiss me as I continued massaging her ass cheeks and making my way closer to her pussy with wandering fingers. I stretched her open and slipped a finger under the silk of her panties.
Her kiss became needier, and her tongue darted into my mouth as she rocked back in my lap, urging me to fill her. “I need you,” she whispered as she arched her back.
I ran a finger over her slit and was shocked and delighted by how wet she was. Her cheeks flushed pink as I traced her wetness up over her clit and circled it in quick flourishes. She turned her head away like she was ashamed of how aroused she was and tried to hide her face from me.
“Don’t play coy with me,” I teased. I eased a finger inside her, earning myself a sweet gasp as her fingers clutched at my shoulders. “There’s no shame in wanting it.”
She turned back to me. Her bottom lip was pinched between her teeth, and her cheeks were still flushed. Angela looked absolutely stunning, and for the first time all week, I was able to focus all of my attention on her and let all the other noise and bullshit fall to the side.
I pressed another finger into her pussy and went in deep. She sighed with pleasure. When I started fucking her with my fingers, she unravelled and ravaged me with kisses up the side of my neck. She kissed my jaw, which was well on its way to becoming thick with black hair. She devoured my mouth, and I fucked her harder, until she was moaning into my mouth as she came all over my fingers.
I held her up by her ass as I slowly got to my feet. I turned around with her as she hooked her legs around my waist and then lowered her down on her back on the sofa.
“There’s nobody here, right?” she asked as she stared up at me, while I kicked my jeans off.
“Everyone went home. It’s just you and me, baby girl.”
She pressed her ankles together and lifted her legs in the air to pull her panties down. I helped her pull them off her ankles and then wrapped my fingers around them. I pulled her legs apart and found her to be ridiculously flexible. She grinned up at me as I stared down at her, revelling in her beauty and the lean lines of her body. Her breasts were full and pointing in opposite directions as she lifted her arms above her head to grip the back of the sofa behind her.
�
�What are you waiting for?” she asked, shimmying her ass to the edge of the sofa. Her pussy was bright pink and swollen and ready to be doted on.
I went to my knees in front of her. She kept her legs in the air and held my gaze as I sank lower and pressed my mouth to her opening, dipping my tongue in and out before swirling it over her clit and repeating the motion again.
She fought to keep her eyes open, but within moments, her head was back, her eyes were closed, and her breasts were heaving with every sharp breath of pleasure she breathed.
I sucked her clit between my lips and pulled as I pushed my two fingers back into her. Her back arched, her toes curled, and a cry of sheer delight escaped her lips. I continued suckling, even as her thighs quivered on either side of my head as she rode the waves of her orgasm.
When she settled, I shifted my fingers inside her to press up against her G-spot. Her eyes flew open, and she stared down at me as I massaged that sweet spot inside her. All the while, I sucked her clit and ran my tongue over her.
When she came again, I lapped up her fluids with my tongue.
She was a trembling mess when I straightened and moved in close to her to rest my cock against her. She wiggled her hips and coated my shaft in her wetness. Then she dropped her hips to try to take the tip of me.
“Hang on,” I said, leaning to the side to grab my jeans from the floor. I pulled a condom out of one of my pockets and tore it open with my teeth. Angela watched as I rolled it on, and then when I moved to position myself, she proved how eager she was by grabbing my cock and guiding it into her pussy.
She was slick and wet and tight and everything I needed.
“Holy hell,” I breathed as her walls tightened around me. I pressed in deeper until my thighs rested against hers.
She gasped sharply, and I froze, not wanting to hurt her.
“Don’t stop,” she whispered.
I heeded her plea and began thrusting in and out. She reached out to grab my forearms and held on tightly as I fucked her, hard and deep, nice and slow. Her whimpers of pleasure had me coming apart at the seams as she looked up at me with big, beautiful eyes.
