by Zoey Parker
His dark eyes met mine, lust making them like black pits. His right hand left my breast, trailing over my exposed stomach. My poor, destroyed dress had only a few buttons left and they were covering my bare crotch. His hand moved there, over the top of the material, pressing it against my mound.
I murmured his name, but it came out as a muffled whimper.
“You’re responsive. A little desperate?” he teased, his hand moving to my thighs, massaging me over the fabric. “Nothing but a vibrator at home to take care of you? Don’t worry, baby. I’ll take care of you. But I’m going to get mine, too. You’re going to give me everything, Diana, and you’re going to love it.”
His hand finally found bare skin again at my knee. Slipping beneath the fabric, he trailed up along the inside of my thigh, dragging the fabric with his hand. I felt the hotness of his touch collide with the coolness of the air in The Cut. The dichotomy had me shivering with desire, my muscles twitching with need.
It felt like it was taking him ages, but he finally found my pussy. He barked out a quick laugh. “Oh, you are wet. Filthy little thing, aren’t you?” His thumb stroked over my already wet and swollen outer lips, so close to where I needed him, but so far. I tried to move, attempting to get closer to him, but he just laughed again.
His left hand was still playing with my exposed breast, twisting and tugging at my nipple, then squeezing my flesh again. But that right hand…oh, it was like fire, burning a trail slowly closer to my core, lingering along the edges of my womanly heat.
I wanted to beg him to just touch me, but found only muffled whimpering escape me.
After what could have been an eternity, his thumb slipped between my folds to find my aching opening. He plunged inside and I let out a relieved, stifled scream. “Tight,” he grunted. “Been a while?”
Not that he cared. After finding my opening, he pulled his thumb out only to replace it with three fingers instantly. I felt stretched; it had been a while. He pumped them in and out of me, curling them now and again to massage my inner walls. My hips moved against him, my body trying to get even closer as it finally got what it needed.
As his fingers probed my core, his thumb slipped up higher until he found my clit. He flicked at it and my whole body jerked as I moaned. “Mmm, needy, aren’t you? I know you at least touch yourself here after the lights are turned out. While you’re huddled under your covers. Sliding your hands into your panties…or maybe you just sleep without them. You seem like the type. Just in case someone like me sneaks into your room at night to fuck you. You know that’s what I’m going to do, right? Fuck you.”
I nodded, desperate for him to make good on his words.
He continued to finger me, three inside my core and his thumb torturing my clit. It was driving me crazy and his words only egged me on, made me hotter and wetter.
I was trembling as he touched me, his thumb moving faster and faster until I felt the pressure build. My body screamed, on the verge of release when—
He stopped.
That bastard stopped. My eyes, which had fallen closed in my ecstasy, snapped open and fixed on him. I’d have yelled at him if I hadn’t been gagged, and maybe I would have spit out my panties, if I didn’t see where his hand had moved to. He was now gripping his hardness, stroking his length.
He moved to stand between my legs, shoving them open farther. I felt when he positioned his head at my entrance. Heat flooded me, my body tight with anticipation, and when he finally forced himself into my wet pussy, I was overcome with pleasure.
He wasn’t gentle. Instead, he took what he wanted from me, forcing his length inside of me all at once. I felt full of him, his bulbous head hitting the very back of me, filling up every inch of me.
“Fuck!” he growled, then he began to move.
His left hand moved away from my breast to settle on one hip while his right gripped my other hip tightly. He used them like handles so he could thrust into me hard and fast. He shoved himself inside of me over and over again, causing my body to shake and pulse with the force of his thrusts. My hips tried to move, to meet him, but he wasn’t having it. His large hands kept me firmly in place as he had his way with me.
“You’re mine now,” he told me in a low, strained voice. He moved his hard length within me, sliding in and out as fast as he could. “Every fucking inch of you.”
I didn’t protest. I wouldn’t have even if my mouth had been clear. I wanted this so badly that I’d have done anything at this point. Whatever he asked of me, I’d have given him willingly.
He thrust into me over and over again. I watched as his muscles strained, his jaw clenched tightly as he approached his own orgasm. He reached up to my mouth and jerked my panties free, telling me, “You’re going to scream my name.”
Then his hand moved down my body again, but instead of returning to my hips, he found my clit again. He began rubbing his thumb over it once more and I let out a loud groan of pleasure.
“Fuck,” he said again, his thrusts becoming more erratic. But his thumb kept up its movements. He fondled and fucked me until I thought I was going to explode from the intensity of it.
Finally, he lost himself. He pushed inside of me as far as he could go, then he trembled. And with a final flick of his thumb, I tipped over into my own orgasm, clenching tightly around his spasming length.
And, just as he’d said, I screamed his name.
“ETHAN!”
My eyes snapped open and I was staring at the ceiling again. My own hand was shoved into my panties, wetness coating my fingers. It took a long moment before I came down from my high and realized just what I’d been doing.
I’d been dreaming of Ethan Chambers. Of him dominating me. And my own hand had been touching my clit as I did so until I found the kind of intense release that I hadn’t had in years.
“Jesus,” I muttered. And then I realized I had screamed Ethan’s name. Probably aloud, instead of just in the dream. “Shit.” I really hoped Cody didn’t hear.
I debated getting out of bed to go and check on him, but I was so exhausted. All I wanted to do was roll over and go back to bed. Glancing at the clock on my bedside table, I confirmed it was only three in the morning.
I groaned. I’d have to be up in only a couple of hours to get Cody ready for school. Which pretty much settled my little debate. I’d go back to bed, get a couple more hours of sleep, then act like nothing happened the next day. If Cody had heard me, he’d be standing in my doorway right now, asking what had happened.
Glancing to make sure he wasn’t—he wasn’t—I was about to pull the covers up and roll over when the phone rang.
“Crap,” I muttered, then I sighed. So much for going back to sleep.
Kicking off what was left of the blanket covering my feet, I swung my legs over. The floor was freezing beneath my bare feet. “Damnit.” I hurried out of my room and into the hall where the phone was. I saw a bleary, sleepy eyed Cody standing in his doorway. It looked like I hadn’t woken him at least.
“Go back to bed, baby,” I told him. “It’s just the phone.”
He nodded once, then turned around to head back into his room just as I reached the phone and caught it on the fourth ring.
“Hello?”
“Hello, Mrs. Leone?” asked an official sounding man.
“It’s Ms. Leone,” I corrected automatically. I’d never been married, which was a blessing in disguise given what a piece of shit Cody’s father was.
“This is the police. My apologies for calling at this hour, Ms. Leone,” said the officer politely. “But there’s been an incident.”
My stomach twisted into cold knots. Incident? That couldn’t be good. “What’s happened?” My mind automatically ran through every horrible scenario it could. Who was the most important to me? Cody, of course, but I was suddenly relieved that he’d woken up and popped his head out of his room. At least I knew he was safe. But what about Jessie?
Oh, god, is she hurt?
“Yes, ma’a
m. Are you the owner of The Cut and convenience store?”
My eyes shut themselves tightly. “Yes, I am. What happened?” My voice was firm and steady despite the panic that was slowly building inside my chest. This wasn’t good.
“Well, I’m sorry to tell you this, ma’am, but it’s burning.”
My eyes opened and, for a long moment, all they did was stare at the wall. What? Burning? My mind tried to connect the dots, but it was like I was missing some of them. The picture wasn’t coming out the way it was supposed to. I couldn’t have heard him right.
“W-who is this?” I found myself stuttering, trying to convince myself that this wasn’t really the police. It couldn’t be. “This isn’t funny. That’s my livelihood!”
The man’s tone turned sympathetic. “Yes, I understand that, ma’am. I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but—”
“Who is this?” I demanded again, this time my voice rising to a near scream. Cody heard me and was up again, lingering at his doorway as he watched me. It was his presence that made me get a handle on this. My voice was still shaky, but I kept the volume a little more reasonable. “There has to be some sort of mistake.”
“No mistake, ma’am,” said the officer. “The fire department is there now, but it doesn’t look good. You’d better come down to the station.”
After that, he said a few more things and I must have responded, though I couldn’t say what I answered with. I felt like I was walking through a haze, my body running on autopilot while the rest of me quietly freaked out inside.
At least it’s quiet, I thought idly. Cody was still lingering at the door, probably freaked out because I was freaked out.
When I finally put the phone back in its cradle, I ended up just staring at the wall. The Cut was on fire. It was burning. The fire department was there. But could they save it? Was there anything left to save? Was my whole world going up in smoke?
“Fuck!” I yelled before remembering that my six-year-old son was standing right there. I winced, fought against what felt like an oncoming torrent of tears, and then put on a brave face. Bracing myself, I turned towards Cody. “I’m sorry, baby,” I told him in a sweet voice that felt fake. “Go back to bed, okay? I’ve got some work to do tonight, but Jessie will be here for you in the morning.”
Cody didn’t look happy with my words, probably sensing that something more was going on. After all, he was six, not stupid. Frowning, he took a step out of his room. “Why do you have to work? The store is closed at night.”
Blinking in an effort to keep from crying, I made myself smile. “I just have some paperwork to do. It’s nothing you should be worrying about.”
When he still looked scared and a little lost, I pulled up my mommy panties and walked over to him. I worked hard to try to look calm and natural, but I still felt stiff. Numb. When I reached him, I knelt down and took him by the shoulders. “Everything’s fine. I didn’t mean to get so upset. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
He thought about it, then asked, “You promise?”
I nodded. “I promise. Now get back to bed.”
He agreed and I pulled him close for a long, lingering hug. Whatever happened, I’d make it work. Everything would be okay. Pulling away, I walked him back to his bed and tucked the covers in around him. I leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on his forehead. “I love you, Cody. Everything’s going to be okay.”
“I love you, too, Momma.”
He turned over in his bed and settled back in to go to sleep. I watched him as rage swallowed me. Maybe I wouldn’t have made the connection so quickly if I hadn’t just been dreaming of the man, but somehow I knew this fire wasn’t an accident.
It was Ethan.
That motherfucker.
Chapter 5
When I was sure Cody was asleep again, I headed back out into the hall and grabbed the phone. My cell was in the kitchen hiding in my purse, so the hall phone would do for now. With angry punches, I dialed Jessie’s number. It rang several times and I thought maybe she wouldn’t answer—it was around three in the morning—but then I heard the click followed by a muffled, “Hello?”
“Jessie, it’s me,” I began, finding myself choking on my own words.
I heard her yawn, then, “If this doesn’t involve a Chippendale’s dancer, free tequila, or a million dollars, I’m hanging up.”
“The Cut is burning.”
That woke her up in a hurry. “What did you just say?”
I swallowed and took a deep breath, doing my best to keep my shit together. “I said the store is burning. Firefighters are there now, but I don’t know how bad it is. Bad enough that the police called me at three in the damn morning and woke my son up.”
I forced myself to stop and take a minute to regain my composure. I was pissed at the police, but it wasn’t their fault. They were just doing their job and I reasoned that it was better than waking up and going to the shop the next morning to find it nothing but ashes.
“Jesus Christ,” Jessie finally said. She sounded numb—in shock maybe. God knew I’d been there just a second ago. Or maybe I still was. “It’s burning?”
I nodded, then remembered I was talking on the phone. Rubbing at the bridge of my nose, I leaned my forehead against the wall. “Yeah. Burning. Or maybe they’ve stopped it by now, I don’t know. The point is…” For a second I couldn’t remember what the damn point was. “Cody. The point is I have to go down to the police station and talk to them. But Cody has school in the morning and—”
“Say no more,” Jessie interrupted. “I’ve got you. I’ll head over now. Bruce has been good lately. I’ll bet he’ll even start for me without an issue.”
She was being forcibly chipper, which I appreciated. “When are you going to replace that piece of crap?” I teased. Bruce was her car, a beat up old junker that probably wouldn’t fetch a hundred dollars in scrap and was worth less than the monthly insurance on it. It was the main reason I gave Jessie a ride every morning, other than carpool and saving the environment. Crap that suddenly seemed so utterly stupid given my situation.
“Next paycheck,” she said, the chipper tone dropping from her voice. It was the same thing she always said, but suddenly reality wasn’t making that very funny anymore.
I wasn’t sure if there would be another paycheck.
“I’ll be there in ten.”
“Thanks,” I told her.
We hung up and I let myself slide down the wall to the floor. I slumped there and thought very seriously about letting myself cry my eyes out. Then I remembered I was an adult woman. I didn’t have time for crap like that. And, besides, I was strong. I would take whatever life threw my way and deal with it.
“Yeah, right,” I muttered. I let myself cry for a whole minute, then I got up off the floor and headed to the bathroom. I had a few minutes to get cleaned up. Might as well look decent for the police, since I wasn’t leaving before Jessie got here.
# # #
I was dressed like it was a normal workday—fashionable black jeans, a button down blouse, and a pair of stylish boots that cost me about ten bucks at a discount store because the brand name was misspelled inside —and had my hair piled on my head in a halfway decent twist when Jessie showed up. She knocked once, then poked her head inside.
“Diana?” she called in a half whisper.
I hurried to the door, grabbing my purse on the way. Her expression was one hundred percent genuine sympathy as she stepped the rest of the way into the apartment. “Oh, honey,” she said, then pulled me into an embrace.
I took half a second to squeeze her tight, then pulled away before she set me off crying again. One minute. That was all the crying I was allowed this morning. “Thanks for coming by,” I told her gratefully.
She lifted one corner of her mouth up in a smile. “Of course. I’ll make sure Cody gets to school.”
I thanked her again. “I don’t know how long I’ll be, but take the day off. I have a feeling The Cut isn’t going to be open fo
r business today.”
Her shoulders slumped, but she nodded. “How bad is it?” she asked timidly.
I shook my head. “Honestly, I don’t know yet. I’ll get ahold of you as soon as I know what’s going on.”
She nodded, then waved as I headed to my car.
I drove to the station in a daze, more going through the motions than anything else, but I was aware of one thing: if I found out Ethan Chambers had anything to do with this, I’d kill him. With my bare hands. Strangle him, shoot him, throw him off a cliff, whatever it took. I’d make him pay for this.
When I arrived at the police station, as requested by the officer on the phone, it was pretty dead. There were obviously a few officers on duty, but it was early enough in the morning that I’d arrived at that sweet spot between the craziness of the night and the beginning of a new day.
