Sweet Ultimatum

by Naima Simone

  His voice hardened, the request turning into a demand. She stared up at him, her silence declaring her defiance. Caitlin was no longer that cowed, helpless girl he’d controlled. He’d already stolen so much from her—the man she loved, a chance for a family—what else could he do to her?

  With a snarl of disgust, Nicholas threw her arm down, causing her to stumble back a step before she righted herself. Without a word, she faced him, schooling her features to expose none of the hate she harbored.

  “I’ve been looking all over for you. Where have you been?”

  Caitlin met his narrowed gaze. She stifled the urge to lift her fingers to her mouth. Her lips felt swollen even without her touching them. She’d stopped by the bathroom to repair the damage sex with Selig had wreaked on her appearance, but the fear Nicholas could see straight through her pretense knotted her stomach. Still, she buried the panic deep, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing her squirm.

  “In the library. I needed a break.”

  “With Selig?”

  “Would I be so stupid?” Not a tremor betrayed the lie. No, Nicholas could no longer do anything to harm her, but he could hurt Selig. Just as he’d threatened if she didn’t send him away. “I don’t know where Selig is. If you’ve lost him, then you need to keep better track of him.”

  “Oh I’ve known exactly where’s he’s been,” Nicholas sneered, pushing his face close to hers. “Since you eluded me after leaving New Eden, I did the next best thing and kept tabs on him. As long as he stayed in Boston, I knew you weren’t with him. It’s the only thing that saved his life, my sweet Caitlin. Let me make myself crystal clear. If he’s come back here for you, all that can change with one phone call.”

  Her breath hitched in her throat at the threat. He would do it. Nicholas would snuff out Selig’s life in the time it took him to punch the digits on the telephone. A successful lawyer in the firm his father partnered, Nicholas had dealings with dangerous characters that shadowed the underbelly of society. Criminals. Gangsters. Killers. He used his father’s firm to launder money for them. The small, unassuming town in the woods of Washington State proved a perfect cover for Nicholas’ criminal activities. She’d stumbled on the knowledge by accident, but had used it as leverage to free herself from the slavery of their relationship.

  Caitlin dwelled under no misconceptions about why Nicholas had—and continued to—allow her to live. He hadn’t allowed his partners in crime to murder her because he wanted her for himself. After their relationship ended, his obsession had never waned, instead it had escalated. Six years ago, after Selig had returned home and they’d become lovers, Nicholas’ obsession had tipped into murderous rage.

  “Did you know he would be here, Caitlin? Did you know Selig would show up tonight?” The silky tone of his voice didn’t fool her. She heard the menace lurking beneath the softness and it raked sharp grooves over skin.

  “No,” she lied, “neither Mac nor Alise told me they expected him to attend the wedding.”

  She waited one, two, three thunderous heartbeats while Nicholas regarded her in stony silence. Finally, he leaned back, his arms crossing over her chest and a soundless sigh of relief passed through her parted lips.

  “Either you’re telling me the truth or you’ve become a better liar over the years. I’m not certain which. Congratulations. You’ve saved his life. For tonight.” As sudden as a snake, his hand struck out, clenching her arm in a vise-like grip guaranteed to leave bruises. He jerked her to her toes, his face inches from her. “Make no mistake, Caitlin. By returning to New Eden the clock is ticking. We both know I don’t make promises I can’t keep. Every day he stays here, he risks forfeiting the life you fought so hard to save.” Giving her flesh one last cruel squeeze, Nicholas flung her arm back. “Get rid of him.”

  Chapter Five

  “I’m glad you could make time to come shopping with me, Caitlin. I haven’t had as much for myself since your father’s stroke. Not that I’m complaining, of course.”

  Translation—I sacrifice and sacrifice. The least you could do is make time to spend with your mother.

  Never mind that Caitlin had uprooted her life and moved back to New Eden to help with her father after his stroke. Not that there had been another option. No, Caitlin loved her father. David Madison had been her best friend and supporter, the peaceful buffer between her and a critical mother. A year of her life for him—she would have given ten. Even that wasn’t enough for Janet Madison.

  Caitlin had never been able to do—or be—enough for her.

  “I’m happy to spend a day with you, Mother.” Caitlin chose to respond to the first part of her mother’s comment. She had managed to avoid a confrontation for the past three hours of lunch and shopping. She could make it sixty more minutes. Thirty-six hundred seconds.

  She smothered a sigh and returned to thumbing through the displays of lingerie.

  “I suppose I need to take advantage of it while I have you here. Your father’s mending so you’ll be gone again soon.” Again, censure lay under the innocuous words. The first nine months after her return, Caitlin had lived in her parents’ home. Once her father seemed well on the road to recovery, she’d moved to one of her parents’ summer rental homes. Although she continued to spend two to three nights a week with them, Caitlin believed Janet resented her for leaving. For having the option to leave.

  “I have a life to get back to eventually, Mother. My business, my home. I can’t leave them indefinitely.”

  “A life,” Janet scoffed. “In the backwoods of Wisconsin, some Godforsaken state that no one even remembers is part of the United States.”

  “The citizens of Wisconsin would be very offended to hear you describe their state as forgettable.”

  Her mother’s glare burned a hole in her cheek. One thing she hadn’t missed about Janet—her lack of humor.

  “Don’t get smart with me, young lady,” Janet snapped. “You’re hiding. You have been for six years now. And it’s time you stopped moping and joined the land of the living.”

  Caitlin glanced up, forcing a smile to her lips though she felt anything but casual. Anger simmered in her stomach, on the fast track to becoming a boil. Moping? Caitlin had never had the luxury of sulking. She’d been too busy surviving from one day to the next. She’d been too preoccupied with moving forward instead of curling up and withering away. And somewhere along the road from devastating loss to contentment she’d carved a life out for herself. She owned her own business and home. She had friends.

  But Janet was blinded to her daughter’s successes since a wealthy husband and the status of social maven didn’t rank among them.

  Dropping her gaze back to the lace caught between her fingers, Caitlin kept her voice light and teasing when inside all she wanted was to walk away and not stop until she’d reached the quiet and solitude of her rental home. And her mother wondered why she’d been adamant about moving out?

  “Last time I checked being a businesswoman required I participate in the land of the living.”

  “Businesswoman?” Janet didn’t bother to sugarcoat the derision in her voice. “You call selling scandalous underwear no decent woman would buy, much less wear, a business? I can’t even admit to my friends what you do, it’s so improper and humiliating.”

  And here it comes. Caitlin closed her eyes, resigned to the direction the conversation had veered. As if her mother had been planning and waiting for the opportunity to broach her favorite topic—Caitlin’s lack of a man.

  “All of my friends have daughters who are either married or planning a wedding. They have families, husbands who provide for them. Their lives are full. You’re alone, Caitlin. Alone. The one chance you had at a good, suitable match you threw away…”

  Caitlin’s eyes flew open and her gaze snapped to Janet’s. “I’m not talking about that with you, Mother.” Steel hardened her voice even as a sliver of grief pierced her heart. Yes, they had families, men who loved them. And yes, she was alone. Only
not the loneliness Janet assumed. The emptiness that yawned wide inside her womb, her soul, couldn’t be filled by a man, money or social standing. Nothing could replace the barrenness left by a child—the loss of a child.

  Yet all Janet could see was Caitlin’s bare ring finger. Her mother couldn’t get past her disappointment of not being connected to New Eden’s cliquish “elite”. She had never forgiven Caitlin for breaking up with Nicholas, the son of one of the wealthiest and most prestigious families in their small town. Neither of her parents had been able to peer past the handsome, charming exterior to the monster that lurked beneath.

  Janet whirled back to the clothing displays, the clap of hangers hitting each other as she snapped through the lingerie, her expression frozen into one of tight displeasure. Lines bracketed lips thinned in irritation. Her eyes narrowed.

  “Who wears those scraps of material you call underwear anyway? You’d think in Wisconsin women would need more than a couple of pieces of string to keep them warm.” Her mother’s glower fixed pointedly on the “couple of pieces of string” in Caitlin’s hand.

  “Now there’s an interesting place to enter a conversation.” The deep, melodious voice laced with amusement belonged to only one person. As the dark timbre of it brushed over the skin exposed by her strapless top, Caitlin’s heart sped up until she felt as if she’d just completed a marathon. Her breath sounded harsh even to her ears. She took a precious few moments to control her reaction before lifting her eyes to meet the amber gaze that had haunted her in the two days since she’d left—ran—from Mac and Alise’s wedding reception.

  The memories of that night clung to her. Last night she’d dreamt again. Only this time she’d used her vibrator to finish herself, imagining it was his cock shuttling in and out of her in fast furious strokes. Her sex clenched in response to the memory, damp heat gathering on the sensitive folds. Caitlin shuddered, her lashes lowering in self-defense. God forbid he noticed how her body readied itself to be fucked with only a meeting of their eyes.

  “Selig Richardson.” Janet’s chilly greeting abruptly reminded Caitlin of her surroundings. Chagrined, she belatedly took notice of Mac standing with Selig. Damn, would he always have this affect on her? Yes, her mind whispered, always.

  “Mrs. Madison.” Selig shifted his attention from Caitlin to her mother, smiling at the older woman even though she maintained her disdainful expression. “It’s good to see you again.”

  “It’s been a long time.”

  If Janet’s rudeness stung, Selig didn’t reveal it. Embarrassment suffused her face, heating her neck and cheeks. And her temper slipped the rope she’d leashed it with. Her lips parted, a sharp retort for her mother’s lack of manners hovered on her tongue. Before she could speak, Selig slashed a silencing glance in her direction, the warning clear. His smile never faltered as he focused his regard on Janet.

  “Yes, it has. Mac told me about David. I was sorry to hear about his stroke.”

  “Yes, well, thank you,” Janet stammered, her cool manner wavering in the face of Selig’s sincere words. Either good manners kicked in or she realized how ungracious and petty she appeared because her mother nodded, accepting his sympathy. Clearing her throat, she turned to Mac. “McKenzie, I thought you’d left for your honeymoon. Caitlin said you were leaving Monday.”

  “Alise and I decided to postpone the trip for a week or so since Selig is here. We planned on driving down the coast and spending a week in her family’s Santa Barbara beach home.” Mac shrugged. “With the new practice we couldn’t afford to take a lavish or long trip, so it can wait another few days while we spend time with Selig.”

  “Which I asked him not to do.” Selig slanted a chiding glance at his friend.

  “Just gives me a chance to tie up more loose ends at the office.”

  “Yes, your office,” Janet repeated. “My husband was hurt when he found out you’d left the firm to begin your own practice. He’d recommended the partners hire you when you were fresh out of law school and supported you ever since. David was disappointed.”

  Caitlin struggled not to gape at her mother’s audacity. Her father would have been proud! David Madison would never have begrudged Mac the dream of opening his own practice. He would have been the one to organize a party, wishing him great success. With the stroke, David’s visitors had been limited, or Mac would know that for himself. She shot a look at Mac who stared down at Janet, his mouth an angry slash. Hurt flashed in his dark eyes.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. I assumed David would’ve been pleased that I’d branched out on my own.” Mac inhaled a deep breath, his shoulders drawing back. Caitlin admired his restraint as he tucked his hands in his pants pockets and attempted another conversation with Janet. “How is David doing? I hear he’s doing much better.”

  “As well as can be expected…”

  “I see your mother hasn’t changed.” Selig’s amused murmur drew her attention back to him. And once more, everything faded away, leaving the two of them in a sensual cocoon. The deep rumble of Mac’s voice and her mother’s softer, plaintive tone faded. The sweet heat of the whisper licked at her ear, stroked over her bared shoulders and grazed the hardened nipples straining against the soft cotton of her top. Her sex clutched in need.

  “Some things never do.” She shifted back a step, desperate to place more space between them. Selig sucked up the oxygen in the entire floor room, leaving her lightheaded and trembling from his nearness.

  “And yet, some are unrecognizable.” His gaze searched her face. “I didn’t know you lived in Wisconsin.”

  Her mind raced back over the conversation with her mother before Selig and Mac’s arrival. She returned his scrutiny, wondering exactly what he’d overheard. Caitlin hunched one shoulder in a shrug, scrambling to appear casual under his probing, golden gaze.

  “Why would you?”

  “A little far from home, isn’t it? How long have you been there?”

  “Six years.”

  Surprise flickered over his face before he schooled his features into an inscrutable mask. Caitlin could almost feel the questions brewing behind the unsmiling expression. She turned away, her next words spilling from her lips in a rush, heading him off before the queries came.

  “What are you and Mac doing here?”

  “Shopping.” Caitlin cast a droll glance over her shoulder at his obvious reply. The corner of his full lips quirked though he continued to study her with disturbing intensity. “I moved into the house and need to stock up on everything I’m missing. I didn’t bring mundane things like towels and sheets with me from Boston.”

  Caitlin blanched, forgetting her attempt at indifference. How long did Selig intend to stay?

  “Your parents’ house?” she rasped. “But…but why? I assumed you were staying with Mac and Alise. Why would you open the house if you’re not moving back?”

  Selig’s head tilted to the side. “You seem upset, Caitlin. Does it distress you to know I may be settling in for a longer stay?”

  Damn it, yes! The cry rebounded against the walls of her mind. Not only did Nicholas’ ominous warning ring in her ears, his presence threatened her resolve not to give in to the asinine arrangement he intended for her. Every day he remained in New Eden was another day her strength weakened. Friday night in the library had confirmed her defenses against him were laughable.

  “It’s your choice. And none of my business.” She flung the cold rejoinder out, giving him her back. Not that the dismissal accomplished anything. A subtle shift behind her and in the next moment a hard chest and one muscled thigh pressed into her side. That fast she found herself blocked by clothing racks on three sides and an unyielding, insistent male on the other. Lust slammed into her, snatching the breath from her lungs. The hard ridge of his cock rode the small of her back and she curled her fingers into the material in her hands to keep from turning around and grinding her pussy against that erection until she exploded.

  “That’s where you’re wrong, baby,�
�� he crooned. “Every bit of it is your business since my decision to stay depends on how long it takes before fucking you is commonplace. And, sweetheart, I’m nowhere near that place yet.” His warm chuckle dragged a shiver from deep inside her soul. His fingers closed over hers, easing the stranglehold she’d had on the soft lace in her grasp. “Buy the yellow. It will glow like sunshine against your skin. I won’t even remove it. I’ll just push the bra down to suck your pretty nipples and move the panties to the side before sliding deep in your wet pussy.”

  With another diabolical laugh, Selig released her hand, retreating but leaving the vivid images he’d described circling in her head. She wanted it. She hungered for it. An empty ache pounded in her pussy, begging to be filled. The swollen lips creamed in welcome of his invasion and her clit pounded in demand and delight.

  As if the material under her fingertips burned, Caitlin snatched her hand away. Selig’s eyebrow arched high, his gaze dropping to the nipples thrusting against her shirt, begging for the touch he promised. A smile so erotic curved his lips, Caitlin couldn’t hold back the whimper that escaped from her throat. The small, hungry sound hardened his beautiful features. Lust suffused his expression, the predatory gleam in his hawk gaze brightening while the flush of arousal colored his high cheekbones. The full lips seemed to become even more so and Caitlin wanted to bite down and suck the bottom lip into her mouth, bathing the sting with her tongue. And then do it again.

  “You ready, Selig?” Mac’s baritone shattered the sensual thrall. Caitlin yanked her eyes from his, her gaze skimming the floor, the clothing displays—everywhere except him and the weight of her mother’s stare.

  “Yes.” She felt the heat of his attention transfer from her. Caitlin exhaled a soft, relieved breath. “Mrs. Madison, it was nice seeing you again. Please tell David I said hello.”

  “Goodbye, Selig.”

  Selig and Mac departed, taking the tension with them and leaving a different kind of strain behind. Swallowing the cowardice that urged her to evade her mother’s regard, Caitlin faced Janet, her chin notched a shade higher than normal. Maybe expecting to be socked with the disapproval lining Janet’s expression.