He ran his finger down the seam of her ass and over the end of the plug.
“Now, you make certain that stays inside you, darlin’. You don’t want a spanking on top of what you had last night.”
She whimpered quietly, and he might have heard the word asshole muttered under her breath, but if he had, he’d ignore it.
He ran a finger through her folds, gathering up her juices, and brought it to his mouth so he could lick the taste of her from his skin. Delicious.
“Rest your head on the pillow,” he ordered, aware of how rough his voice sounded. His balls were so tight it was painful. He helped move her into place, her round ass in the air, her thighs spread wide, so he could see the glistening lips of her pussy. Perfect.
He reached over into the bedside drawer again and quickly grabbed a condom, slipping it on. Grabbing the base of his cock, he lined it up and slowly slid inside her. He had to pause for a moment to gather his control. Sweat broke out on his forehead as he held himself still.
She felt tighter due to the plug still buzzing away in her butt. But that wasn’t what made him pause.
It was the rightness of being inside her. The sense of coming home. He was where he was meant to be. He hadn’t meant to become so deeply involved with her. But she meant something. In fact, he was starting to believe Kinley was everything.
He drove himself deep, driving all thoughts from his head, except for the way she felt. How hot she was as she sucked him inside her. Soon there was nothing except the two of them.
Her small whimpers grew louder, more demanding. He grabbed her around the hips, drawing her back against him. For a moment, he worried he was being too rough, but then she made a noise that was pure pleasure, reassuring him that she was enjoying this just as much as he was.
He pulled back then slammed inside her. Sweat gathered on their skin, their breathing growing faster and sharper.
“I’m close, darlin’. I want you to come with me.”
“I can’t,” she cried out. “It’s too much. Way too much.”
He knew what she meant. It was too much. It was more than he ever expected to feel. But he wasn’t going to stop.
Reaching around her body, he flicked his thumb against her clit. She clamped down, her cry filling the room as her passage pulsed around his cock. One thrust, two and he slipped over the edge into bliss. His own groan filled with deep satisfaction.
“Damn, baby, you’re going to be the death of me,” he told her when he could finally speak again.
She laughed. “Ditto. But at least you won’t die with a vibrating butt plug up your ass.”
7
Kinley tossed the garbage from the small can into the big bag attached to her housekeeping cart. She moved as quickly as she could. She’d told Sloan she’d be ready for him to pick her up for Alex’s party at nine o’clock, and it was already close to eight. She still had to clean the toilets on this level as well as clean the boss’s office.
She wasn’t certain why it needed cleaning. From what she’d heard, he was hardly ever here. March Industries was a huge company, and the Houston branch was a small one. Still, he had an office here, and Gloria told her it needed cleaning.
Normally she wouldn’t clean this level but she’d swapped her shift with Gloria’s so she could get out of here earlier.
She pushed her cart towards his office and swiped her card to allow her access. It beeped, and she opened the door. Everything in the building was well secured. It helped her breathe a little easier when she was cleaning on her own.
She looked around her in interest. It wasn’t what she’d expected. It was a huge room with a gorgeous, old wooden desk in the middle. It should’ve looked out of place in the ultra-modern building but somehow it seemed to fit. If she’d had more time she might’ve stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows and looked out at the gorgeous view of the Houston skyline, which was breath-taking at night.
But she knew she had to move quickly. So, she raced around dusting shelves that didn’t need dusting, vacuuming up imaginary lint, and wiping down all the surfaces. When she was finished, she looked around trying to see if she’d missed anything. She got down on her hands and knees to check underneath the wooden shelving on the back wall.
Now there was a space that needed cleaning. She could leave it, after all she was in a rush. And no one would even know.
I’d know.
With a groan, she grabbed the vacuum back off the cart and knelt down so she could stick the tube under the shelving.
As she vacuumed, something made a pinging noise in the tube. Crap. Was the universe trying to make things difficult for her, or what? Knowing she’d feel guilty if she didn’t check, she started to open the vacuum. She’d just check the bag for whatever had been sucked up then go. It was probably nothing. She pulled out the bag. With a grimace, she stuck her hand inside.
“So gross, so gross,” she muttered to herself, then she felt it. She grabbed hold of something.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
She screeched and pulled her hand, along with half the fluff stuck in the bag, free. She coughed as she stared up at the man glaring down at her.
She just blinked at him, too shocked by his presence to be scared. How had she not heard him enter? Who was he? And why was he glaring down at her like she’d just murdered his dog?
She ran her gaze over him, taking in the expensive suit, the neat hair, and his deeply tanned skin. He was probably quite handsome when he wasn’t scaring defenceless women half to death.
“Who are you?” she snapped. A good offence was the best defence, right?
“Shouldn’t that be my line?”
It should?
“I’m cleaning this office, obviously. What’s your excuse?” Okay, she needed to chill. But getting scared half to death tended to make her grumpy.
“My excuse is that this is my damn office. And I expressly told Elsa to keep the cleaning staff out.”
Oh, shit. She swallowed, trying to wet her dry throat.
“I’m sorry. I was . . .” she trailed off, not wanting to get Gloria in trouble. After all, the other woman had swapped shifts to help her out. Although the fact she’d told her to clean this office when it was clear this man did not want anyone in here made Kinley suspicious.
“I was under the mistaken impression you wanted it cleaned.”
“I don’t.”
Really, was there any need for him to be so snarly? So she was cleaning his office? What was the big deal? There wasn’t even a hint of anything personal in here.
“And it doesn’t look like you’re doing much cleaning. You’ve made a huge mess.”
She bit the inside of her cheek to prevent herself from pointing out she’d only made the mess because he’d snuck up on her and frightened her half to death.
“I’m sorry, I’ll clean it up.”
He grunted. “Who are you? What’s your name?”
She sighed, resigned to the fact that she was probably going to lose her job. “Kinley Stevens. I just started working here two weeks ago.”
He just stared at her with those dark eyes.
“Um, I’ll just vacuum this up and get out of your way.” She went to put the vacuum back together and realized she still held whatever it was that had gone up the pipe in her hand. She studied the item in her hand.
It was a cuff link. She held it up. “Is this yours?”
He stared at her for a moment, and a small shiver worked its way up her spine from that cold glare. He wasn’t a big man. His shoulders were slim, and she was pretty certain he wouldn’t be much taller than she was. But he had an aura of command about him.
He snatched the cuff link from her hand. “Get out.”
Jeez. Hadn’t his mother taught him to say thank you? Ungrateful asshole.
“I’ll just clean—”
“I said get out. Now.”
She froze for a second then quickly stood, banging her knee against the corner of the woo
den desk.
“Ow! Crap!” She grabbed at her knee, nearly toppling over as pain engulfed her. Damn, that hurt.
Someone wrapped their arms around her to hold her steady. When she glanced up, she found herself blinking up into James March’s handsome face.
Crap.
“S-sorry.”
He growled something under his breath. Then he shocked her by swinging her up into his arms. She was surprised he could hold her weight, but he showed no sign of strain as he carried her to the dark, leather sofa.
He stalked over to the small fridge at the wet bar and pulled out ice tray. Grabbing a towel from one of the drawers, he dumped the ice in it then walked back over and handed it to her.
“Thanks,” she said, unable to help herself. Her manners were too ingrained not to say thank you when something was given to her, even if this man was one of the rudest she’d ever met.
She held the towel filled with ice on her knee, wincing a little. Wow, she’d banged it good.
She sat for a few seconds then swung her legs off the side of the couch.
He sighed, a sound filled with irritation, then grabbed her legs and swung them back.
“Stay there.”
She frowned at him.
“You just told me to leave.”
“And then you banged your knee.”
“It’s fine. Just bruised.” She tried to move again, but he stopped her once more. It was like one of those bad black and white comedies. Only neither of them laughed. He pulled the towel away from her leg.
“Stay there. I need to make certain you didn’t break anything.”
She sighed, trying to ignore how her skin tingled as he lightly pressed down on her knee. It hurt a little but it was nothing major.
“Don’t try to pretend you care about my health.”
“I care about not getting sued.”
Oh. That made more sense.
He sighed again as he looked over at the mess on the floor.
“Look, I’m sorry I was cleaning in here when I shouldn’t have been. But that mess is your fault.”
Shut up, Kinley. You need this job.
Yeah, except she was pretty certain she was fired anyway, no matter what she said now, and he’d annoyed her enough to earn a piece of her mind.
“My fault?” He gave her an incredulous look.
“You startled me. I was trying to find whatever had gone up the vacuum when you startled me. And, by the way, you’re welcome.”
“I didn’t say thank you.”
“No, you didn’t. Didn’t your mother teach you any manners?”
She knew she had to stop talking, but when she got riled, her mouth tended to overtake her good sense.
“I didn’t have a mother.”
She wouldn’t feel sorry for him. She wouldn’t.
She wished now she’d done some more research on him, though.
“Sorry. But if you did, she would have told you it’s polite to say thank you when someone does a kindness for you.”
“And what kindness did you do for me?” he asked in a low voice.
She watched him warily. He didn’t move towards her, didn’t make any move that could be construed as the least bit threatening, but she still felt a little scared.
He sighed, breaking the spell. “No need to look at me like I’m the wolf and you’re Little Red Riding Hood. I’m not going to rip off my disguise and start chasing you around the room.”
Yeah, she wasn’t so sure. “I found your cuff link.”
He raised his eyebrows. “And you believe that was a kindness?”
Okay. What the hell did that cuff link mean to him to put that dark look on his face?
She tried to climb off the sofa once more.
“Stay still until I give you permission to leave.”
Permission? Really? Jeez, he sounded just like Sloan when he was in Dom mode. She froze at the thought. God, Sloan. She had to get home.
“Perhaps I should call someone to come and get you. Are you married?”
“No.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “I have a boyfriend, though.” She wasn’t certain why she felt the need to make that clear. He didn’t react, making her feel like an idiot.
“I have to finish cleaning this floor.”
“Hmm, let’s see. I own this floor. I own this building, in fact, and I pay your wage.”
She heard the note of warning and raised her chin. “If you want to fire me, go ahead.”
He just stared at her. “Stand up slowly.”
She stood, feeling like she was a bug under a microscope as he watched her.
“Walk up and down the room twice.”
She gave him a snarky look but did as ordered. Without limping. She’d probably have a bruise but she was fine. “Happy now?” she grumbled.
“No, not really.” There was a funny look on his face she couldn’t decipher. “You may clean up this mess then go home.” And with that, he strode away.
“Oh, I can, can I?” she muttered once the door closed. “Thank you, your royal highness, for being so kind to your lowly servant.” Somehow, none of that made her feel any better.
James bit back his irritation as he strode out of his office. He’d let the redheaded cleaner get to him. He should have just fired her. When he’d noticed her in his office on the monitor in his apartment, he’d been furious, certain she was there to snoop around. Not that she’d find much. He rarely used that office unless he was meeting with someone.
He preferred to work in the apartment which occupied the entire top floor of this building. He had one in every city he had offices in. A place for him to live and work. Quiet. Solitude. He snorted as he walked into his living area. Who was he kidding? He hated the quiet. Hated that when he walked in he didn’t hear the TV playing in the background with some sports game on. That there was no music, no laughter, no fun.
This wasn’t the home he’d shared with them. That was back in New York. He’d sold it to a nice couple who’d been thrilled to buy it at such a good price. His real estate agent had been horrified at the loss he’d taken. He’d just wanted it gone. But the memories still followed him halfway across the country.
He drew the cuff link out of his pocket and placed it on the coffee table, staring at it. Sometimes he wondered why he even came to Houston. He wasn’t really needed here. But he guessed it was a way of punishing himself, to be so close to Sloan, but not able to see him.
He remembered when he’d purchased the set for Sloan. How had it gotten under the book shelves in his office? He held it up and let painful memories swamped him. He remembered coming home from some hideous function the three of them had attended, and heading into his office to send some emails. Sarah and Sloan had joining him, managing to coax him into forgetting his work for a while. He smiled grimly. He hadn’t taken much persuading. The desk had been christened well that night. It was probably when Sloan lost the cuff link.
Might have been better if it had just stayed under that damn book case.
Kinley pondered her boss all the way home. He was rude, arrogant, and, obviously used to getting his own way. What a jerk.
Oh well, she guessed after tonight she wouldn’t need to worry about him anymore. She was betting she wouldn’t have a job come next week.
She grimaced as her car screeched as it turned the corner onto her street. She really needed to get that looked at, and as soon as she had some disposable income, she would.
All thoughts of her boss and his rude manner fled as she got to her apartment building and parked right behind Sloan’s huge ass truck. Shit.
She’d texted him before leaving March Industries to tell him she was running late and would have to meet him at Alex’s party. So, what was he doing here?
She opened her car door, shutting it gently as he climbed out of his truck. Slowly.
“Sloan, I’m so sorry I’m running late. I’ll get ready quickly, I promise.”
He didn’t say a word, just stood there staring at her.
He had to wonder where she’d been. It was time to come clean. She couldn’t keep lying to him. It wasn’t right.
She licked her lips. Telling him out here wasn’t the best idea though. And she was very aware that he hadn’t spoken yet. Was he furious with her? Because she was late?
“Do you, um, want to come in?” Of course he does, Kinley. He’s hardly going to sit in his truck and wait for you to get ready. His silence was unnerving, and she felt the urge to fill the void. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”
She walked up to her apartment with him following like a big, silent shadow. It took her two attempts to unlock her door, nervousness making her hands shake. When she stepped into the apartment, she didn’t feel ashamed of its run-down appearance for once. Nope, all her concern was taken up by the man who followed her quietly inside. He shut the door and studied the deadbolt for a moment. Then he turned back to her and took in a sharp breath.
She glanced at him nervously; the look on his face was frightening, like nothing she’d seen on Sloan before. “I thought I was meeting you at Alex’s house.”
“Who is he?”
“What? Who is who?”
His gaze narrowed. “Don’t lie to me, Kinley.”
She sighed. This was it. He knew she was lying. She should have told him well before now. “I would have told you before—”
“Spare me the excuses,” he snapped. “How long has this been going on?”
How did he know?
“How did you find out?”
He snorted. “I might not be the smartest man around but I’m not stupid, Kinley. You’ve been busy almost every night these past two weeks. You’re obviously exhausted. You’re not getting much sleep. I want to know why you didn’t tell me.”
“Because I thought you’d be upset.”
“Of course I’m fucking upset,” he roared, startling her. He’d never yelled at her. Not once. And for the first time she felt a little scared of him.
Suddenly, he deflated, giving her a defeated look. Then he ran his hand through his hair. “Jesus Christ, Kinley, you should see the look on your face. No matter how furious I am with you for cheating on me I’d never fucking hit you.”
Sir's Redemption (Doms of Decadence Book 8) Page 7
