“You know what I love about you?” Justin asked.
“My body?”
“Yeah, but that wasn’t what I was going to say,” he said and placed a hand on the small of her back to guide her out of the room. “I love the fact that you’re down for trying just about anything.”
She shrugged. “After letting you spank me I think I’ve lost the few inhibitions I had.”
“That’s a good thing because since meeting you, I’ve discovered that I have a very perverse imagination. I’ve been kind of nervous about showing you the stuff I bought.”
Her lips twitched, and it was hard to keep a straight face. “From the way you talk, I’m surprised you don’t already have nipple clamps.”
Justin ducked his head. “Actually, I have a few types, but I decided that your nipples are a little too sensitive for any of the ones I have.”
Caitlin’s mouth dropped open, and she stared at the not so prudish man in her life. “I don’t even know how to respond to that.”
“It’s not often I can make you speechless. This is a good day for me.”
They were on the stairs with Justin standing one step below her, making it easy for Caitlin to literally look down at him with her most arrogant stare. “Don’t push your luck.”
Justin chuckled softly and tugged her hand to get her to follow him. “Come on, the sooner we get the nipple clamps, the sooner I can put them on you.”
She followed Justin out to the Range Rover. He didn’t drive it often, which was why it was still at Nathaniel’s. Caitlin hadn’t bothered getting Justin’s car moved when she’d kidnapped him.
“We can take my car,” Caitlin offered, pointing to the Toyota Camry she’d had since high school. The car hadn’t been new when her parents had given it to her. She’d hated getting an old Toyota when her parents could have afforded a new Mercedes. Her father had given her a placating smile and assured her it was a ‘very dependable car.’ That car had nearly three hundred thousand miles on it now and cost her nothing in gas. She loved her car and lamented the day she’d have to replace it.
Justin eyed her car with the same suspicion he always did. “Would you be mad if I bought you a new car?” he asked and opened the door to the passenger side of the Range Rover for her.
“Nope,” she said and slid into the seat. “I wouldn’t drive it, but you can waste your money any way you like.”
Justin let out a long‑suffering sigh. “Fine, just keep driving that thing until the wheels fall off.”
He walked around, climbed into the driver’s seat and then frowned when he needed to adjust everything.
Caitlin watched the way Justin carefully adjusted his seat and mirrors. His focus was on getting everything exactly where he liked it, and he looked downright perplexed. She’d driven the Range Rover once before and seen how annoyed he got with people adjusting things. That was part of the reason she’d gone out and changed everything while she was getting the house ready for his arrival. At the time, she’d still been furious with him for walking out on her, and the childish act of messing with his car had made her feel better.
Justin caught her watching him and must have seen the amusement dancing in her eyes. “You did this!”
With an innocent bat of her eyes, she asked sweetly, “Why would I want to mess with your car?”
“To annoy me,” he said and returned his attention to getting everything just right.
“Don’t piss me off again or I’ll do worse than mess with your car,” she warned.
“Woman,” he said in a low sexy voice, “if you keep teasing me, I’m going to strip you out of those jeans and take you right now.”
“I had no idea adjusting the settings on your car would get you so turned on,” she said.
“Don’t pretend you don’t know how aroused your attitude gets me,” he said and stopped messing with the seat position. “Come sit on my lap.”
“We are not having sex in here.”
“Then stop tempting me,” he warned. His eyes were so full of raw lust and promise that Caitlin’s panties were getting wet. The temptation to slide across the seat and straddle Justin was almost too much, but that would lead to her breaking her firm rule about sex in cars. She’d never realized that she had an inner horny bimbo until a small voice in her mind reminded her that it was an SUV, not a car. Her inner horny bimbo made a pretty convincing argument, but Caitlin still managed to quiet her.
After another few minutes of meticulous adjustments they were on the road.
There wasn’t much talking during the drive which wasn’t that unusual for them. They never felt the need for idle chatter when they were together. It was nice because sometimes Caitlin didn’t feel like talking. With most guys she’d dated, that had been a problem. She’d found that there were plenty of men who didn’t want to be responsible for keeping a conversation going. Unfortunately, they got nervous during long silences. Justin was fine sitting next to her in silence and never seemed uncomfortable when she didn’t want to talk.
After parking in the dark lot in downtown Hayward, Caitlin started to have second thoughts about their outing. The neighborhood wasn’t terrible, but even the bar across the street was closed. It looked like nothing was open. The sign on the nondescript door read ‘Open 24 Hours.’
“Are you sure about this place?” she asked, eying the door like it might bite her. Actually, she wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to put her hand on the door of a sex shop that was open all night. “What kind of perverts come to a place like this in the middle of the night?”
Justin smirked and opened the door for her. “Perverts like us,” he said.
Caitlin walked in, surprised by how clean the store was. She’d expected a dingy little hole in the wall with men masturbating in every corner. Other than them and a sales clerk, the store was deserted.
Justin guided her to the right as soon as they entered and went straight to the nipple clamps, much to her surprise.
“Shop here often?” she asked.
The color of Justin’s cheeks deepened ever so slightly, and he gave her a sheepish smile. “I’ve bought more than a few things from this store. Some stuff I have to buy online.”
Caitlin wanted to tease him, but there was something incredibly sexy about Justin shopping for sex toys while fantasizing about using them on her, and that’s exactly what he’d been doing.
Justin had slowly been loosening up since they’d met. At first, she hadn’t seen the signs, probably because it wasn’t obvious to the casual observer. Looking back, she could see that it had started with simple things like leaving the top button of his shirt undone and moved on to wearing jeans part of the time. In the background, he’d been collecting an arsenal of kinky items to use with her. It was empowering to know she’d been the one to bring him out of his shell even before they’d had sex.
Caitlin gave the assortment of nipple clamps a brief glance before heading further into the store to check out their lingerie. Justin was right about her nipples being overly sensitive, and she wasn’t sure she’d like nipple clamps. Of course she was still willing to try them because she could be wrong. She’d never expected to enjoy spanking as much as she did.
The large selection of lingerie caught her eye. She toyed with the idea of picking up the French maid costume, but it felt a little cliché. Same with the school girl costume, although the idea of Justin ‘punishing’ her was pretty arousing. Still, it wasn’t her style. That’s when she saw what she was looking for. It looked like a slinky black dress with a low back and thin strips of black fabric going across the front of a plunging neckline. When she picked up the package to examine the back she smiled, knowing she’d found the perfect outfit. The entire back was bare. Her ass would be mostly exposed with a few thin strips of fabric covering it, tempting Justin to spank her. Heat rushed through her body just from thinking about Justin’s reaction when she put it on.
“I have a leather paddle that would look fantastic with that,” Justin said
from behind her.
Caitlin almost jumped at the sound of his voice, but caught herself. She’d been so caught up in her own fantasy she hadn’t heard him approaching.
“Did you get your nipple clamps?” she asked.
“Your nipple clamps,” he corrected and held up a pack with what looked like purple silicone toys in it. They weren’t as intimidating as she’d expected.
“They vibrate,” he said proudly, “and I’m pretty sure they’ll work on you. If not, we can always skip nipple clamps, but I’m hoping we don’t have to do that.”
“Yes, that would be a real tragedy,” she said in a dry voice.
Justin snatched her package and walked to the front. “Do you need anything else?” he asked. “They’ve got movies, vibrators, and other toys. I’ve got all the bondage stuff they have.”
Caitlin raised an eyebrow. “How about a swing?” she asked, pointing to the boxes in front of the counter.
Justin looked thoughtful.
“I was kidding,” she said.
“It would be nice to have one,” he said as he studied the box. “I’m renting the place I share with Isaiah so we couldn’t install it there, but I have plenty of space in my room at Nathaniel’s. We’ll be there at least part of the time, especially when Tempest’s due date gets closer.”
“You don’t need a swing,” she said.
“Do you think Lydia would let us install it at her condo?” Justin asked.
“No sex swing,” Caitlin said firmly.
Ten minutes later, as Justin loaded the box with the swing into the back of the Range Rover, Caitlin wasn’t sure if she wanted to laugh or smack some sense into him. “You’re a pervert,” she said.
The yawn ruined the effect of his cocky grin. “Too bad, I’m too tired to do anything with our new toy at the moment.”
“I’ll drive,” she said and held out her hand for the keys.
“I’m too tired to argue, even knowing you’re going to mess up all of my settings,” Justin said as he handed over the keys and climbed into the passenger seat.
It was a soothing drive back to Nathaniel’s. The night was quiet, and the only sound was Justin’s even breaths as he dozed in the passenger seat.
Chapter Eleven
At eight in the morning Caitlin should still be asleep, especially after their late night outing. Too many weeks living on a farm had messed with her sleeping habits. Now, she was awake early even when she didn’t have to be. Pulling the pillow over her head to block out the sun streaming through the window didn’t do any good. The doorbell ringing over and over meant there was no going back to sleep, not that she’d expected to anyway. Justin was so exhausted he was sleeping through the noise.
Caitlin quickly dressed in jeans and a tank top before heading down to answer the door.
The woman on the front porch studied her with a critical eye, taking in every detail from Caitlin’s bare feet to her messy hair.
This woman was striking in a way that made Caitlin wish she’d at least brushed her hair. Silky sable hair fell in waves down her back, resting at her curvy hips. Her face was like a statue of some goddess with high cheekbones, skin as smooth as porcelain and full rosy lips. Thick lashes framed her pale green eyes.
“I’m here to see Jeremiah,” the woman said but quickly corrected herself. “I mean Justin.”
That got Caitlin’s hackles up. “Justin’s still asleep,” she said with a hand on her hip. Hell, no! Justin was not going to entertain some little tramp.
The woman gave her a disapproving frown which melted away into a bright smile. “You must be Caitlin!” she said and pulled Caitlin into a hug. “Isaiah’s told me all about you. Don’t be upset that Jeremiah didn’t say anything to me. My son was probably afraid I’d come out here and meddle. I’ve been dying to meet you!”
Caitlin felt a little dazed by the woman’s exuberant hug.
“I’m Helena, but you can call me Mom.”
“Um,” Caitlin said as she tried to extricate herself from the hug.
“Let her go, Mom,” Justin said from the stairs. “Caitlin isn’t much of a hugger.”
Helena released her, and Caitlin turned to watch Justin come down the stairs in nothing but a pair of black sweat pants. Even while being overwhelmed by his mother, she could appreciate the view.
“Why are you here?” he asked. If not for the smile playing on his lips, the question might have sounded rude. For the most part, he seemed happy to see his mother.
“As soon as I got your message I took the first available flight,” she said and then grabbed Caitlin’s arms to hold them out a little. “You aren’t showing at all! I assumed you’d have at least a little bulge at this point.” Then she hugged Caitlin again. “I’m so excited! While I know things are different now, you should marry right away. Tahoe isn’t far, and it’s lovely there. We can all drive there today, and you can get married in one of those chapels. Then you can rent a cabin and enjoy the lake for a few days. Of course, if your heart’s set on a big wedding you can have one later. Those things take time to plan. Is your mother close enough to help with the plans? Jeremiah’s father won’t like it, but I can stay as long as you need me.”
“I go by Justin now,” he reminded his mother.
“Of course,” Helena said and blushed. “Keeping track of your names is a lot of work. Have you thought about names for the baby yet? Hopefully he won’t change his name over and over. A mother shouldn’t have to work so hard to remember what to call her own son. Isaiah hasn’t changed his name, so I should be thankful for that.”
Caitlin was sure she looked like a fish trying to take in air. “I’m not pregnant.”
Justin sighed and Helena looked disappointed. “When Justin said he needed me for a delivery in the next couple of months I assumed he was nervous about your delivery.” She gave them a sheepish smile, and a rosy flush spread across her pale skin. “Oh dear, I’m so embarrassed.”
Caitlin felt a little bad for her. “Don’t be embarrassed,” she said and stepped back to avoid being hugged again. This emotional woman couldn’t possibly be Justin’s mother.
“Where’s Father?” Justin asked.
There was no mistaking the tension in Justin’s voice when asking about his father.
Helena shrugged and looked down. “You know your father.”
Justin sighed and nodded.
Helena changed the subject back to babies. “Tell me about this delivery that has you so nervous.”
“Aiden’s mate is having triplets, so I’m going to do a c‑section,” he explained. “You’re the best OR nurse I know.”
Helena’s brow furrowed in thought. “I don’t remember Aiden.”
“Viktor was his father, so he wasn’t around a lot before last year,” Justin explained.
“Now he and Justin are BFF’s,” Caitlin added.
Justin looked aghast. “Men don’t have BFF’s.”
Helena looked confused. “What’s a BFF?”
“It stands for best friends forever,” Caitlin explained.
Helena nodded her understanding. “Maybe they would be happier if they did have BFF’s.”
“Caitlin has them and she’s mean most of the time,” Justin said. “Aiden is not my BFF and don’t ever use that term with my name again.”
Tempest and Aiden must have heard the noise on the way to the kitchen because they headed for the foyer.
“If I’m not your BFF then I’m going to give back that friendship bracelet you made me,” Aiden said with a grin.
Justin flipped him off, earning a disapproving frown from Helena. “There’s no need to be rude,” she chided gently.
“Yeah,” Aiden said, “you’ll hurt my feelings.”
Helena’s face lit up when she saw Tempest’s swollen belly, but she looked uneasy approaching Aiden. Caitlin wondered about her strange behavior. One minute she was open and friendly, the next she was uneasy. The temptation to reach out to her thoughts and feelings was strong, but Caitl
in fought it. Whatever was going on was obviously going to make Caitlin want to kill Justin’s father.
“Glad you’re up,” Justin said. “This is my mom. There was a little misunderstanding when I told her I was going to need help with a delivery.”
“I thought I was going to be a grandmother,” Helena explained.
“Nah,” Aiden said. “Justin won’t risk getting Caitlin pregnant until she finishes medical school.”
“That’s right!” Helena exclaimed. “Isaiah told me you were studying to be a doctor.”
Caitlin was surprised that a woman could sound impressed and disapproving at the same time.
“Why is all her information coming from Isaiah?” Caitlin asked. “I don’t buy that you were afraid she’d show up here to meddle.”
“Jeremiah, I mean Justin isn’t very good at expressing his feelings,” Helena said. “His father was very cruel when he was a boy.”
Justin snapped to attention. “That’s enough about my childhood. I’m hungry.” He looked at Caitlin. “Did you stock the kitchen?”
“Don’t act like a prick in front of your mother,” Caitlin said.
That made Justin smile. “Sorry, I’m just hungry.”
“Me too,” Tempest said enthusiastically. Then she smiled at Helena. “I’m Tempest.”
Helena thought for a moment. “You’re Roman’s granddaughter?”
“Add several greats to that and you’ve got it,” Tempest said.
“Is he going to be here?” Helena asked nervously.
Justin slipped an arm around his mother’s shoulders. “I don’t expect Roman to stop by, and he’s not as scary as you think he is.”
Caitlin raised an eyebrow because Roman was the head of the Draksel family, and he could be pretty damn scary when he wanted. Of course, he looked much less scary since he’d married her friend, Lydia.
Helena shivered a little. “If you say so.” Then her attention returned to Tempest. “You’re having children with Viktor’s son?”
“I’m Aiden.” When Aiden extended a hand, Helena shrank away and didn’t take it.
The Vampire Will See You Now (Psy-Vamp Book 4) Page 7
