by Maren Smith
Her voice trembled as she asked, and for all the world, Jared wanted to take her in his arms and hold her, but there was no time for that. Not until he’d dealt with Mike.
“Did you hear what I said?” Jared’s gaze flitted briefly toward Sophie before he advanced on the other guy. Mike had landed on his backside in the doorway and was just getting back to his feet. “Get out of here.”
She gulped at his reply but nodded as she paced away. Rolling up his sleeves, Jared turned his attention back to Mike. His face was cut open from the couple of times Jared’s fist had collided with it, but there was still outrage in his eyes. Moving forward, his fist swung out at Jared, but he ducked the offensive and threw a punch of his own in return.
Mike grimaced at the impact.
“How dare you!” He hissed the words at Jared. “How dare you come here and attack me. I’ll call the police.”
“Good,” Jared smirked at him. “I’m sure Sophie would love to talk to them about your behavior this evening.”
Mike’s expression shifted, his brow furrowing as the blood poured from his nose. “Is she your girlfriend or something?”
So, the moron was finally getting the idea, was he?
“Or something,” Jared confirmed as he took a step toward Mike. “So, are we done here, or do I need to teach you some more manners?”
Mike reached out a bloodied palm toward the wall. “Fuck it,” he muttered. “No whore is worth all this shit. You can fucking have her, mate.”
Jared’s jaw tightened as he approached. “Two things.” His voice was low. “But they’re important. First, the lady whose company you had the pleasure of enjoying tonight is not a whore.”
Jared was in control, and if he didn’t know better, he’d have said he was actually enjoying himself.
Mike tipped his head back and snorted. “I guess you’re right,” he replied sarcastically. “Apparently, she’s not the sort to put out after all.”
Jared inhaled at the way the idiot spoke about his little girl. He was less than a foot from Mike now.
“I guess you’re just not her type.”
Mike blinked in his direction. “And you are, I suppose?”
Jared smiled. “Yes, I am. Oh, and the final thing.” He lunged forward, grabbing the back of Mike’s head and smashing it into the entrance of the property. His face connected with the wall with a dull, sickening thud.
He watched as Mike slid to the ground again, his knees folding beneath him as though they were made of paper. Only when Mike was completely incapacitated on the doorstep did Jared finish his sentence.
“I am not your fucking mate.”
Chapter Two
Sophie
Sophie stumbled down the path, her heart racing so fast, she thought she might pass out.
What had just happened? One moment she had been on yet another mediocre date with another uninspiring man, and the next, she’d been pinned against his doorway when she’d refused to go inside.
I should never have gone home with him.
She pulled in a shaky breath at the realization.
I should never have even said yes to the date, and yet…
Sophie blinked away the tears which threatened at that thought. She already knew the conclusion. She’d thought it enough times in the past to know how that sentence ended.
And yet, she was lonely.
For all the happiness and joy her children, Billy and Lucy, brought her, and however much she enjoyed her job, those things didn’t fill the void, the vacuum which had opened up after Jared.
Jared.
Sophie glanced back as though she couldn’t quite believe it was him. Jared, the man who had taken her from her home and demanded she call him Daddy. The man who had compelled she live out their every salacious fantasy as his little girl. She caught her breath as the enormity of those memories crashed down on her, her gaze lingering while he landed another punch at Mike. She turned back quickly, rushing past a parked car in the direction of the main road. She wasn’t exactly sure which part of town this was, but perhaps she could flag down another cab from the main road.
Perhaps she could get home and collect her thoughts.
Perhaps she could get over Jared.
Even as that notion echoed around her head, it was futile. There was no getting over Jared. God knows she had tried. Months of counseling, completing her divorce, and years of building her self-esteem had all helped, but in the end, there was no dodging the inevitable. Jared was always there, lurking in the dark corners of her mind. The man haunted her. His was the last face she saw in her mind’s eye before she fell asleep. His was the name she murmured when she masturbated. It was always Jared.
How the hell was he here? How had he saved her from Mike’s unwanted advances?
She was nearly at the main road when she heard his voice, just one word commanding her feet to halt.
“Sophie.”
She gulped at the way he made it sound. No one had ever morphed her name into something so hot and desirable as Jared. Slowly, she spun around to find him racing down the path, only wearing trousers and a shirt, the sleeves rolled up to reveal his forearms. She inhaled at the sight of him. Jared was just as she recalled him—her every worst nightmare and hottest fantasy all rolled into one fine package.
“Are you all right?”
He was on her now, slightly out of breath as he reached for her hand. Sophie stood rooted to the path as she watched the hand’s path toward her, and as his fingers closed around hers, she held her breath.
“Sophie?” There was genuine concern on his face. “Should I call an ambulance?”
She laughed out loud at the idea of Jared calling an ambulance. This was the man who had asked his friend, the doctor, to stick her with more than one needle in the past, and who’d insisted that same doctor, Daniel, show up the next day to check her over. Heat bloomed in her cheeks as she remembered precisely how he and Daniel had appraised her condition, and she shook her head at the recollection.
“No. I’m fine. What… what are you doing here?”
After all this time, it was all she could think to say. It seemed like an age since she’d stalked out of that restaurant, her head full of triumph at the thought she’d somehow got one over on him, when the reality was, she was no better off at all. Sitting down and telling the man who’d captured her that he’d had no right was initially cathartic, there was no doubt about that, but it hadn’t taken away the memories. Or the way Sophie still craved his touch, and the menacing murmur of his voice in her daydreams. Or every ounce of the pain and humiliation he’d created. Because she did—she missed all of those things—but mostly, she missed the pleasure.
Jared had torn orgasms from her body, even when she was spent, when she thought she couldn’t take any more. He’d detonated her, and he’d denied her, whenever and however he’d liked.
“I was just passing by,” Jared smirked down at her.
He was so goddamn tall. How had she forgotten how tall he was?
“It looked like you needed help.”
“You were passing?” Sophie glanced back at the desolate street behind him. “Why would you be passing here?”
“You’re welcome, by the way.”
She exhaled. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled, ignoring the blush deepening on her face. “Yes, thank you. I… I got a little bit out of my depth.”
“Again.”
His succinct response was depressingly accurate.
“Yes,” she said with a sigh. “Again.”
“Need a ride home?”
He arched his eyebrow at her in the way he knew drove her wild, and reflexively, she clenched the muscles between her legs. The ones that wanted him. The ones that demanded his attention.
“No, Jared. Thank you, though.”
“So,” he glanced around theatrically. “You have a car close by?”
His tone suggested Jared already knew the answer.
“No, I…” She fumbled for her purse. “I don
’t, but I can call a cab.”
“You won’t get one for ages at this time of night, Sophie, and it’s not safe for a little girl like you to be wandering around here, waiting. Anything could happen to you. Anyone could find you.” His eyes drilled into hers, the intensity of his stare, reminding her someone already had found her.
“Thanks for your concern, but it’s really not your problem.” She stepped away, forcing her feet to move despite their reticence. “I’m sure I can hail a cab from further down the road.”
Although, as she looked around, it was patently clear that wasn’t going to be the case. The area seemed abandoned, save for a few passing motorists, and as she glanced further down the street, she could see an ominous group of young guys, loitering by the pedestrian crossing. Her belly twisted at the thought of what they might say when she passed them.
Of what they might do.
If Jared had taught her anything, it was some men simply couldn’t be trusted.
“But it is my concern.” Jared’s voice floated passed her ear. “You’re always my concern, Sophie. You’re my little girl, no matter what you say. No matter how you reject me, I haven’t forgotten the things we did.”
Sophie’s eyes fluttered closed. Oh, God. She hadn’t forgotten either. She would never forget. How the hell had she got herself into this?
“I remember the things we did,” she whispered into the wind, but Jared was there in an instant as if her voice had commanded him.
“Are you sure?” he breathed into her nape, and she shivered instinctively. “Are you sure you remember?”
She turned to meet his determined blue gaze.
“I remember everything. How you took me, how you bound me, how you tormented me.”
“How I loved you?” He inched in her direction, his dark locks catching in the wind as he gazed at her. “Do you remember that, little girl? How I gave in to you? How I held you, how I took you into my bed, and how I gifted you with the most incredible climaxes?”
He didn’t say it, but Jared’s eyes conveyed the rest of the sentiment.
How I gifted you with the most incredible climaxes of your life?
“Yes.”
Sophie had to push the word out, and he nodded in response.
“And how you tried to kill me?” His tone was deeper now. “How you left me for dead?”
She trembled at the memory of his lifeless body, sprawled out on the bedroom floor after she’d walloped him with his own martial arts trophy. Sophie had only acted in self-defense. When Jared had wrapped his hand around her neck and squeezed, she’d had no choice.
She had to survive—for her children.
“I remember.”
Their gazes met again.
“And do you recall the last time we saw one another?” His words were almost a sigh. “How you told me we were done? How you stalked out on me?”
Sophie’s back straightened. “You deserved it.” There was more venom in her voice than she’d realized as she hissed the reply up at him. “What did you expect? After everything you put me through, Jared. What on earth did you expect?”
He smiled at her, raising his brow. “I suppose you’re right, but you meant it.” Jared sounded surprised. “You actually were done with me. You didn’t try to make contact again.”
“I was trying to move on.”
Her hands rose to her hips in irritation. Why was she standing here, justifying herself to this man? She could have called a cab by now. She could have been on her way home.
“Is that what Mike was about?” Jared gestured behind him toward the house he’d just saved her from, and that idea resonated in Sophie’s head.
Whatever else transpired, Jared had saved her tonight. Clearly, Mike wasn’t going to allow her to leave, and just like Jared, he was too strong for Sophie to resist. If Mike had got her inside his house, anything could have happened. She could have woken up stripped and bound to another fucking bed, and this time, it might not have had such a happy ending—if that’s what she could call the conclusion of her time with Jared.
“Was he part of moving on?”
She inhaled. Damn it, why did she have such shitty luck with men?
They always seemed so bloody nice online, so interested in her and accommodating, but then, once she’d met them in real life, they were either ludicrously dull or turned out to be complete psychopaths like Jared. Not that she’d ever been to bed with any of the others, of course.
There had been no one since him.
“Maybe,” she muttered, glancing away to avoid his knowing gaze as her arms fell limp by her sides.
“So, how’s it going then… this moving on?” There was a sardonic air to his words that furled all the frustrated fears inside her.
How dare he mock her!
After everything he’d put her through, how dare he have the audacity to stand there and mock her.
“Yeah, it’s fucking great.” She lifted her chin to meet his eyes once more. “How is it for you?”
Chapter Three
Jared
“Touché.”
He laughed at her admission, shaking his head while he gazed down at her large, determined eyes. Sophie had a good point. At least she was going on dates. At least she was trying to move on with her life. There had been no moving on for Jared. Hell, he’d never even tried. What was the point? No one was going to live up to the high standards Sophie had set. No one else would be able to transfix him with a lingering stare or a flick of her hair. And no one else would understand him the way she did.
He was her Daddy—no one else’s.
There was no reverting on that.
There was no taking back the things which had happened between them.
Sophie’s expression softened at his conciliatory tone. “I suppose it’s been difficult for us both. It’s hard to move on.”
“Exactly.” He edged in her direction just as a fresh gust of wind pushed her toward him. “You’re a hard habit to break, Sophie Bannister.”
She smiled—the first small chink of light in the armored response she’d met Jared with so far. “It’s Miller.”
“What?”
“My name,” she went on. “I changed it back to Miller after I divorced Jason. I’m no longer Sophie Bannister.”
Jared blew out a breath, shocked and disappointed a detail as important as her name had managed to pass him by. She’d been listed as Bannister on the most recent electoral register, so the change must have been recent.
“Oh, right.”
He towered over her, catching the scent of her tresses as the wind whipped them in his direction. Christ, she was so incredible. His little girl. Jared wanted to grab a fistful of that hair and kiss her, harder and more intently than she could bear. He wanted to literally sweep her off her feet.
“So, Sophie Miller. Are you sure about that ride?”
Her eyes narrowed with obvious suspicion. “I appreciate the offer, but I don’t think that’s a good idea. Do you?”
Evidently, he did, or he wouldn’t have offered. Jared didn’t propose anything he wasn’t certain about.
“Actually, yes. You need a ride, and well, I have my car just behind us.”
Sophie glanced over her shoulder warily. “That’s your car?”
“Right.”
“Oh.” She sounded skeptical, as though it was difficult to believe. “Well, the last time I was in a vehicle with you, I think I was unconscious, and you took me to God knows where and did all sorts of obscene things to me.” Her eyes flashed at the recollection. “So, I’m not sure I want to replicate that situation.”
Jared laughed. He just couldn’t help it. Sophie was so serious, her expression pensive as the breeze picked up her hair and tumbled it in his direction again. “I promise that’s not going to happen this time,” he assured her, lifting his palms to show his sincerity. “I’m not going to drug you. I don’t want to hurt you, Sophie.”
She sucked her lip between her teeth as she considered hi
s proposition.
“What were you really doing here, Jared?”
He inhaled at the sound of his name. He still couldn’t get used to it from her lips. Daddy sounded so much better, and he couldn’t wait to hear her addressing him properly again.
“Were you truly just passing?” Her blonde eyebrow rose at her own question, her cynicism more than evident. “Or were you following me?”
Jared smiled at her. Sophie did know him better than just about anyone else. Better than any woman had ever done, and better than both of his lousy parents.
“Okay, I may have been following you.” He shrugged. “What can I say? It turns out I have a bit of a Sophie problem.”
She fluttered her eyes at him. “Why were you following me?”
Wasn’t it obvious? “Because I didn’t trust that piece of shit you were dating,” he replied darkly. “And as it turned out, my instincts were right. Weren’t they?”
Sophie shifted her weight between her feet, the gesture so reminiscent of the naughty little girl he’d once captured and punished, his cock swelled on reflex.
Fuck, he missed her.
“Yes, they were,” she admitted. “But that’s not the point, Jared. You shouldn’t be following me.”
“But you’re glad I was?” Jared pushed his advantage. “I hate to think what Mike would be trying to do to you now, otherwise.”
“Don’t.” Her expression was pained. “I… I just can’t think about that.”
“Then don’t.” Jared employed the softer purr now, the one which she always used to respond so well to. “It doesn’t matter. I was here.”
Daddy was here.
The final three words were on the tip of his tongue, but he held them in. He wondered if Sophie didn’t hear them in her head, though, her eyes widening at the same time he thought them, and a small bloom of crimson pooled on her cheeks.
“I know. Thanks.” She didn’t raise her face and meet his eyes, her gaze weighted to the buttons of his shirt.
“It’s okay, Sophie.”
She was so close now, so close their bodies practically touched, and every fiber of Jared wanted to reach out for her—to feel the silky pale flesh of her hands, to share the warmth of her burning face when they kissed—but somehow, he resisted.
