by E. M. Gayle
“Pretty far from what I hear. Jeremy tells me your dessert bar is the new hot spot in midtown.”
She smiled, but not before something else crossed her face. What the hell was that?
“My best friend Zia owns the place, I just manage it for her since her food network show took off. She’s crazy successful.”
He filed that information away for later. The name of her friend sounded vaguely familiar. “And the catering. That part of the job too?”
She shook her head. “No, that part’s mine. And thanks to Zia’s referrals it’s starting to take off. I’m getting more bookings than I can handle on my own. Guess I’m expanding though, since I’ve taken on temporary employees until I figure out what I want to do on a more permanent basis.”
“Running a business is a time consuming endeavor. How does this fit into all of your plans?”
“This? You mean dating? I guess it really doesn’t which is why I haven’t been dating.”
“And yet you’re here now—on a date.”
“My date was pretty insistent.” The smirk on her face gave way to a smile and that look slammed into his gut.
The desire he had before to possess this woman clawed deeper into his soul. He wanted to be inside her now. This waiting for it had to end. He didn’t have much patience to begin with and after the last several days of anticipation, he felt stretched to his limits.
He abruptly stood and pulled her up with him. “I think it’s time to put that sassy mouth of yours to the test.”
Her eyes widened and a visible shiver worked over her. What didn’t happen was her saying the word no. Quite the opposite. She met his gaze with such a strong look of obvious desire it made his cock ache even more. Something he didn’t think possible at this point.
Given the right opportunities she let her guard down and the sweet submissive side of her flourished. He wanted more of that from her. He didn’t just want it, he planned to own it. She would belong to him because it’s what he wanted and because it’s what she wanted.
He merely had to show her.
“It’s time to go,” he said as he abruptly stood and held out his hand for her. Her eyes widened in surprise a moment before they softened and she slid her hand in his.
That simple brush of skin made his stomach clench. He imagined that same delicate touch wrapped around his cock and groaned.
He led her toward the front of the boat, weaving their way through the crowd toward the exit. As fun as these parties could be, he needed to get her somewhere private.
“Leaving so soon?” Alex stopped short as Viktor Sokolov spoke from behind them as they stepped onto the dock.
He turned back, unease rippling through him. There was something about Viktor’s tone that set him on edge.
“Yes, I have an early meeting tomorrow morning.” As Viktor well knew since he would be in attendance as well.
Viktor stepped closer, his eyes no longer focused on him. “I haven’t yet had the pleasure.” His gaze zeroed in on Harper. “I’m Viktor, you are?”
Alex released Harper’s hand and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her tight against him. That odd feeling of possessive ownership had returned and it was ten times the force I’d felt with Jeremy.
“I’m sorry. Viktor, this is Harper Allison my date. Harper this is Viktor Sokolov our host for the evening.”
She held out her hand in greeting. “It’s a pleasure, Mr. Sokolov, you have an incredible ship.”
Alex’s jaw tightened when Viktor took her hand and pressed his lips to her precious skin. “Thank you. And trust me it is all my pleasure to meet you, Miss Allison. Although I must admit you look very familiar to me. Have we met before?”
Alarm shot through Alex. While his lungs seized he struggled to remain calm as he tried to remember if Viktor had been in attendance at his stepbrother’s birthday party.
“No, we haven’t met. I’m sure I would remember that.”
He knew Viktor reasonable well and the billionaire was as sharp as they came. If she looked familiar, then he’d seen her somewhere. And likely remembered precisely when and where.
“Okay. Tell me then, did you enjoy the party?”
A bright red flush immediately colored her neck and cheeks, but to her credit she recovered quickly. “I did. It was a new and pleasant experience.”
Viktor smiled, but Alex caught the sharp glean in his eye. He needed to get Harper out her and now. He’d already texted Gerard and he and the car were already waiting.
“Harper, why don’t you go ahead and catch up with Gerard. He’s waiting for you just over there.” He pointed in the direction of his head of security/personal driver. “I need to speak to Viktor for a moment.”
Again, she smoothly accepted his instructions without breaking the smile across her face as if she’d been trained for this kind of thing. “Of course. It was nice meeting you, Mr. Sokolov.” She quickly made her way across the dock while he watched, unwilling to turn back to Viktor until he saw her safely tucked in his car.
“Is that the woman from Ronin’s party?”
Alex bristled at Viktor’s question. Fuck. How could he not have anticipated this might happen? Viktor and Ronin weren’t close, but they often shared business opportunities with each other and if the Russian had been in town at the right time it made sense Ronin would have invited him. Ronin had a thing for Russian women and Viktor always had a steady supply…
Tomorrow he’d planned to nail Viktor in their business negotiations with the knowledge of some of the man’s backdoor US holdings as his upper hand. Now he’d have to scramble for another tactic. One that would ensure not only Harper’s safety from his psychotic stepbrother, but also get her out of the crosshairs of Viktor’s incessant need to play games with people’s lives.
He wasn’t even supposed to be here tonight. He’d texted to say his flight from DC had been delayed, but to enjoy the party without him.
Fucker had played him.
But why?
Harper stood at the door to her apartment, legs trembling. Her nervousness in the face of letting him inside her home charmed him. He’d given her the choice of his place or hers and she’d chosen hers despite whatever reservations she might be having. If she so chose, she could still say good night now, but they both knew she wouldn’t.
The sexual tension between them had multiplied as the night went on and his sudden need to get the hell off that fucking yacht and somewhere private so he could show her every filthy thing he wanted from her was met with an equally intense molten desire from her.
That sweetness of hers was going to be the death of him. With every quake of a lip or flush of pink along her smooth skin, more blood rushed directly to his cock. How she’d maintained that innocence through the crap life had given her he didn’t understand. Most women would be bitter at least if not broken.
Harper was not broken. A little lost maybe. But she was forging her own path anyway and he couldn’t help but admire that.
On the short drive back to her place his thoughts kept wandering back to that first night at the Glass Kat with Jeremy. He didn’t know when she finally realized that he’d not climaxed during their scene, although he’d come so damned close just from watching her. To ensure detachment on his part, he’d allowed Jeremy to take her first and his friend had fucked her until she’d practically collapsed.
It had been a while since he’d invited Jeremy into a scene with him, and he’d almost forgotten just how voracious the man could get.
It had taken a lot of control on his part to go through with it. Her easy and incredibly natural responses to his touch and his control had gone straight to his head and his possessiveness had reared its ugly head. He’d wanted to haul her out of the Kat and back to his place, tie her to the wall of his bedroom and use her to within an inch of her safeword.
So much for detachment.
Alex grit his teeth and shook the memory from his mind. It wouldn’t do either of them any good for him to ge
t too worked up over this. The critical part in all that came after, when she started thinking about it. She’d realized his lack of release and not only did it bother her, but she’d fixated on it.
It wasn’t beneath him to admit how much satisfaction he got from that. His denial had given him something far more important. Her true interest. And that interest felt special. Like a gift freely given that he couldn’t wait to ravish and defile. Only something about her current fragile appearance told him now was the time to go easy on her.
He’d already pushed her boundaries to the max for one night. First the party, then the public scene. He swallowed a shit-eating grin. He didn’t deserve all the sweetness that she gave him. Not that that had ever stopped him before.
However, he was willing to wait a little while longer if that’s what it took.
When she’d mentioned in the car that he’d not gotten off yet, he calmly reassured her that it wasn’t important. And he’d meant it. His balls might ache with the fierce need to get inside her, but denial wasn’t just an effective tool on a sweet and giving woman like Harper. Putting off his own release would only make it even better down the road.
Now, standing here at her threshold, he saw the obligation shining in her eyes when she hesitantly looked at him. Fuck it. The longer he let her stew the more they’d both anticipate their time together.
She entered ahead of him and flipped on the lights. Her apartment was small as most rentals were in this part of the city, but the appearance surprised him. Instead of the soft, girly furnishings he’d expected, he found modern and cozy in cool neutral tones that bordered on minimalism.
He glanced around, taking in the ultra-conservative furniture so different from what he expected of a woman whose chosen career was born in creativity. Not that he’d visited her place of employment. He’d just assumed…
“Can I get you anything? Some wine perhaps?”
“Yes, wine would be nice.” He’d take whatever she offered for now. The desire to observe her in her own environment piqued his interest. Everyday life had a way of revealing a lot about a person. Where they lived. How they lived. Where they came from. It was all a part of the equation.
“Pinot Grigio okay with you? I haven’t had much time lately for shopping.”
“Sure.” He had no expectation of finding a secret wine cellar in her tiny home. And it didn’t surprise him that her own care was an afterthought. Owning your own business took a great deal of time and energy. It also made him wary about the clash of their schedules that would surely be a problem. He’d work that out for her though.
He followed her into the kitchen, blinking at the sudden change of atmosphere. This was obviously where all of her decorating efforts had been concentrated. Wood gleamed from the countertops to the cabinets only giving way to the translucent colored glass that comprised each cabinet door.
She opened the stainless steel commercial-sized refrigerator that could easily accommodate even the largest of gatherings, pulled out a bottle of wine and set it on the well-used counter.
He could imagine her here at night after a long day of work…
Alex leaned against the doorway and settled in to watch her move as she fussed in the
kitchen she obviously adored. From the placement of the glassware to the location of the bottle opener, she’d created a perfectly efficient space.
When she finally handed him a glass of wine, brushing his fingers with hers, she instantly set his blood to boil.
So as not to offend her, he sipped a small amount of his drink before taking both of their glasses and placing them on the nearby countertop. He had something far more important than a beverage on his mind.
“Come here.”
With her gaze locked to his, she reached for his outstretched hand without hesitation and allowed him to pull her close. For a few quiet seconds he memorized the look in her eyes. Lust with a twinge of nerves. From the unknown he hoped. He also sensed her underlying need. The same thing he picked up from her the first time he’d seen her.
If that wasn’t enough to draw him in, she poked out the tip of her tongue and licked at her lips nervously. That simple and likely unconscious move made his dick go instantly hard. Not that he hadn’t been halfway there since they’d left the party together.
Now, with her skin touching his, a storm brewing in her eyes, and the memory of her screaming into his mouth when her release had hit, he didn’t have a chance in hell of getting rid of his erection. Half or otherwise.
Suddenly he had to see more of her. Reservations be damned. He wanted her naked, wet and completely open and available to him alone. It was time to obliterate the memory of her and Jeremy and replace it with the man who would truly own her.
“Do you remember your safeword?” he asked.
Her body jerked at his question and he bit back a satisfied smile. Her reactions and responses were truly spectacular.
She slowly nodded her head and bit her lip. This time he allowed her silence. He’d offered her an out and she’d chosen not to take it.
Their gazes remained locked as he slowly undressed her. He took off her dress and shoes, mindful to place them neatly on the counter. With no bra or panties to remove, she stood before him bare. Not yet open, but they were getting there.
He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her shoulder. He smiled when a small moan escaped her pretty lips. His kitten liked foreplay AND someone in charge.
Duly noted, sweetheart. Duly noted.
He continued a path to the sensitive skin of her neck, leaving a trail of tiny bites as he went. He listened to every hitch of her breath and the small sighs that she couldn’t contain. Each one going straight to his now throbbing dick.
How had this woman not been snatched up at the Glass Kat the moment she strode through its doors? She wasn’t like any of the other women he’d met there. She was a complete innocent compared to the trained and ready to serve women he encountered at the club. Those women were on the hunt for something specific. This one, not so much.
“Where is your bedroom?”
She made a soft noise akin to a protest. He lifted his head and scrutinized her expression. Only the censure he half expected wasn’t there at all. All he could see in her eyes was Fuck Me.
The molten heat simmering between them made her pupils go dark and her body lean in his direction. She might have a case of simple nerves, but the undercurrent running between them made it clear that this would not be a scene like at the club or at the party.
Here in her apartment every move they made felt more intimate. More real. A fact that should have had him heading for the door. Hell, he had no business being with her in her own space in the first place. There was nothing neutral here to keep them both detached. No safety net either. Only his word that he would honor her safeword if she uttered it. A fact, considering the overwhelming urge to overpower her he currently fought, he couldn’t guarantee.
And her potential fear made him all the more desperate to have her all to himself.
Yet another warning sign that she was different. In fact, alarm bells were going off in his mind left and right this week.
Why or how she was different made no sense to him. He still barely knew her.
And yet, the idea that she was very different had taken hold and wouldn’t let go.
“Bedroom?” He repeated, sharpening his tone to bring them both into focus.
Whatever reservations she fought with died quickly as she acquiesced and led him down the hall to the door at the end. His chest tightened as they walked through the darkened space, his eyes focused on her heart shaped backside. Heat radiated through his blood. He practically burned from the inside out to push her back to her knees where she stood and take her from behind.
Hard.
Now.
Screw the bed.
He’d just as soon take her on the floor. Or against the wall with his hands stretched around her neck in this confined space. The idea of her harsh screams echoi
ng off of these tiny walls made his balls nearly seize with need.
Fuck, his need for her had taken a turn for the dangerous.
His ability to be kind and gentle with her was fading fast.
Alex locked his jaw against his more base urges, determined to hold it together.
When they finally stepped inside her room, his eyes zeroed in on the huge bed in the middle, made up with near military precision. Although it wasn’t her obvious obsession with neatness that ultimately drew his eye.
There in the middle of the pristine white comforter rested the rose crop he’d sent her.
His heart sped up at the sight of it.
He’d fantasized for days about using it on her, never even considering she’d show up that first night without it.
Yes. This was just the thing he needed to rein in the beast threatening to shred his control.
“Kneel down here, at the foot of the bed, face the door.” Amazingly she did as he asked while he walked out of her line of sight and began to prepare himself. He removed his clothing, taking deep slow breaths as he worked and piled everything neatly on the plush upholstered chair next to her bed. He made note of this chair as the perfect spot to sit with her between his legs and her lush mouth wrapped around his cock.
Before he could get completely lost in the greedy thoughts of her hot mouth working his dick, he turned back to her.
He paused and stood still for a minute to admire Harper’s sublime positioning. She looked good on her knees. Naked, spine straight, her hair brushing the top of her buttocks, framing that perfect heart-shaped ass he longed to mark.
The waiting had worked out perfectly. Had he taken her that first night he would have had to tread carefully. She would have been pretty sore from their first scene. Not that that thought had made his mind stop filling with images of her body bent over, red streaks covering her ass.
A grin spread across his face and he imagined if he could see it now it might even scare him with its intentions. It would terrify her.
