by Lilly Wilde
Aiden leaned back on the desk. “Do you recall anything standing out about that night?”
“Other than it being hot as fuck?” That night we’d been so caught up in each other. We hadn’t cared about anything beyond our connection. Not only had I let Aiden fuck me outside that bar, I’d been so starved for his taste that I’d even given him a blow job.
“It was definitely intense,” he said. “But I’m referring to something else.”
He was referring to that pervert. “Was that the guy who’d been watching us?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“How did you know that was him?”
“When I’d spoken with the security team about locating Nadia and Lyric, I’d also told them to get in contact with the owner of the bar to grab their security footage. I wanted to see how long that asshole had watched us and to see if he’d taken pictures or videos.”
That had never crossed my mind, but for someone like Aiden, of course, shutting down the paparazzi was a part of his life.
“Turns out he did,” Aiden said.
My eyes widened. “Are you kidding me? Where are they?”
“It’s okay. I have quite a few contacts in the press. One of whom contacted me about an offer from a sleaze who wanted to sell them pictures of us. I took it from there and here we are.”
“He agreed to meet you here?” I asked.
“He didn’t know he’d be meeting me.”
“Oh. And you beat up the guy?”
“No,” Aiden said.
“Then where’d the blood come from?”
“It was just one punch. Guess he’s a bleeder,” Aiden said, shrugging nonchalantly.
“It’s our own fault. We should have known better,” I said. “What were we thinking?”
“We weren’t. But that doesn’t give some asshole the right to take pictures and try to sell them.”
“What if he sues you?”
He smirked. “That won’t happen.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Let’s just say I have the art of persuasion on my side. He won’t be trying to sue or sell anything. Trust me.”
A past regret, also known as Dane Patrick, came to mind. If Aiden’s confrontation with that guy from the bar was in any way like the one with Dane, I doubted that horrible pervert would be a problem anymore. Being at odds with Aiden was intense as hell, often times intimidating, but his wrath was a thousand times worse when directed at someone for whom he held nothing but contempt.
“You know, I’ve always wondered about that night.”
“What about it?” he asked.
“How did you find me? And why did you finally let your guard down?”
“Allison told me where you were. She said if I had any plan to reclaim you, I’d better do it before our fights damaged us beyond repair. And she was right. Things were pretty bad.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” I said. “And the sex?”
“That wasn’t planned,” he said, stepping toward me.
“But you didn’t do anything to stop it,” I said.
His brows furrowed. “Why would I?”
“Even though we were being watched?”
Aiden placed his palm along my jaw, his thumb caressing my cheek. “At one time, I told you I didn’t—I couldn’t—think when it came to you. More often than not, that’s still the case, and that winter night was one of those moments when my desire for you got the better of me. I couldn’t see or feel anything but you. That was all that mattered.”
It was as though he were describing my own feelings when it came to him. I’d been on auto-pilot that night. “And looking back on it now?” I asked.
“It was careless.”
“I would have died had those pictures been made public,” I said. “Can you imagine what Lyric would think of us if he saw those online one day?”
“Well, problem averted—so no need to worry about it.” Aiden leaned in and kissed me sweetly on the lips. “Now, where’s the hot little number who was begging for a dance?” he asked, just as David Guetta’s Bang My Head sifted through the office speakers.
“Begging? Please. I would hardly beg for those questionable dance moves.”
Aiden grinned and shook his head at me as he pulled me from the office. We danced like two lustful teenagers, each trying to one-up the other. After two songs, we were both worked up. We decided no more dancing for the night and headed back to our table. Aiden grinned and made a motion toward the door.
I shook my head, laughing at his suggestion that we take our display outside. “Thanks, but no thanks.”
“Why?”
“Too soon after dodging the last bullet,” I said.
He patted my backside. “I love dancing with you,” he said.
“Ditto.”
“There once was a girl who was too worried about what others would think of her if she danced in public. What happened to her?” Aiden asked, as we stepped toward the others.
“I guess your killer bedroom skills did what you said.”
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“Once upon a time, a very insubordinate intern told his boss she was rigid and uptight.”
He grinned. “Yeah, I think I was there for that.”
“And he followed up by saying he could help her with that. So I guess he did.”
Aiden and I were too caught up in each other to notice how the others were staring at us.
“You two must have one hell of a sex life because your dancing is almost too private to watch,” Nicholas said.
“You’re crossing a line,” Aiden said, throwing his brother a warning look. “Don’t go there.”
“Dude, I’m just saying—”
“And I’m saying, don’t go there, Nick,” Aiden warned, his voice low. “If I’m not mistaken, you have your own date to keep you occupied. Or has she already lost interest?”
I’d never taken Nicholas’ comments to heart—I’d always considered it innocent flirting. It was also Nicholas’s way of getting under Aiden’s skin, but I’d often wondered how far Aiden would let his brother go.
“Let’s get some drinks. This round’s on me,” Allison said, tactfully distracting the two brothers.
*****
“I’m ready for bed,” Aiden said, reaching for my hand.
“Just because you are, doesn’t mean I am,” I replied, pushing his hand away. “Go ahead and I’ll be up later.”
“Yeah, leave her alone,” Nicholas said. “Aria knows when she wants to call it a night.”
Ignoring his brother, Aiden leaned down and whispered in my ear, “Not later. I want you upstairs now … with everything off except your panties and those boots.”
Aiden stood over me, confident as always and very expectant. His gaze dropped to my crossed legs before making their slow progression to my eyes. His beguiling irises had already transitioned into two dark emeralds, shimmering with the mischievousness of his words. I tore my gaze from his and found the others were observing my exchange with Aiden. I wondered what they were thinking, but as quickly as that thought popped into my head, it disappeared. I didn’t care. All I could focus on was Aiden’s request. To refuse him would be like an addict suddenly saying no to her drug of choice.
And that’s what he was … my drug. I was addicted to him. He need but dangle his gift and I was ready for whatever he had in mind. Already intrigued by what awaited me, I ignored the wondering glances of my in-laws and said the only thing any sane woman would. “Thanks for a great night, you guys. Goodnight.”
Nicholas shook his head at us, his gaze moving from Aiden to me. “I don’t know who’s more whipped.”
“Maybe because it’s none of your concern, brother-in-law,” I said, and grabbed Aiden’s hand, tugging him behind me.
Upstairs in Aiden’s former bedroom, he closed the door as I started to remove my top.
“The next time I tell you to go to bed, I expect you to do it,” he said. He walked over to me, and gra
bbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head back. “Understand?”
It was as though he’d tugged the walls of my sex, because I felt it there more than in my scalp. “Yes, sir.”
“That’s my girl.”
“So now that you have me sans clothing, are you planning to show me what all the fuss is about?” I asked.
“Dance for me.”
“You called me up to dance?”
“Not just any dance, he said, pulling me toward him. “I want a lap dance. I want to see how hard you can make my dick before I have to fuck you.”
*****
Date night with my husband and family had been the ideal way to brighten our fateful trip to Chicago. Aiden, Lyric, Dianna and I ended up spending two additional days to begin working through some family issues. We wanted to be the support Connor and Sienna needed to put their marriage on the right track. Sienna and Connor were leaving the following day for a couples’ retreat.
After our last family meal, I went to the nursery to collect Lyric and found myself watching him.
“What are you doing?” Aiden asked, suddenly stepping behind me.
“Watching our son entertain himself,” I said.
“Hey, little man. Weren’t you listening when your dad said your toes aren’t proper food?”
“He puts everything in his mouth,” I said, laughing.
Once we’d gathered Lyric, we said our goodbyes to Connor and Sienna, who stood in the doorway waving at us as we left.
“Look what you did,” Aiden said, kissing my forehead.
“What?”
“That,” he said, motioning toward the door where the other kids had joined Connor and Sienna.
“I really hope it lasts,” I said.
“I’m inclined to believe it will.”
“Why?”
“I’ve never seen my father afraid of anything. Never saw him back down from a fight. I think Mother’s little stunt may have just scared him straight.”
“I don’t know. Nine times out of ten, people revert to type.”
“So you don’t think my father is capable of real reform?”
“I’m surprised that you do.”
“I guess you’d have to know my father longer than you have to really see what I see.”
“Maybe you’re right,” I said. “I hope so. We’ll all be the better for it.”
“Remember when you wanted nothing to do with family?” Aiden asked. “Least of all mine. Look at you now … you’ve come in and taken over the entire show.”
Chapter Ten
Falling into bed after midnight and waking at the crack of dawn had become Aiden’s new routine. Although he was in town—primarily working from his office at Heart of Wyatt—I rarely saw him. He and I caught glimpses of each other during the early mornings, when I rolled over in bed and watched him stroll out of our bedroom for work. Other than that, a text here or a phone call there was the sum total of our quality time. Somehow, he still managed to carve out special moments for just Lyric and him. If it meant skipping lunch, working from home and taking business calls with the baby in his arms for most of the day, or even falling asleep in the nursery, that’s what Aiden did.
Although this disruption to our lives was temporary, I still found it difficult to maintain the patience the situation called for. Aiden offered reassurances that our lives would soon return to normal—actually sooner than he’d anticipated, being that he’d hired new executives and promoted several others—but late at night when the house was quiet and I was alone, those reassurances weren’t enough to keep his side of the bed warm.
Sloan and Nicholas had been named senior vice presidents and were tasked with the oversight of many key divisions. There were also plans in place for corporate offices in Boston which would become the new headquarters for Raine Industries. All in all, Aiden was setting up things in a manner that would allow him to back away. It would be several months before the offices were complete and everything else was in place, but the day he resumed a nine to five was one I was looking forward to. I missed my husband. Other than a quickie here or there, we’d barely had any intimacy. Thinking of him as I lay in bed had become my own special way of tormenting myself. I typically ended up with a toy, but there were nights when that simply didn’t do the trick.
In Lyric’s room, I was lost in the fantasy of the prince and the princess—the bedtime story Aiden had started. Our toddler’s eyes were content on my face as I mimicked some of the voices Aiden used when he was the storyteller. As I came to the part of the story about the father and son’s camping expedition, Lyric’s lids became heavy—finally closing.
After wishing my little guy sweet dreams, I wandered downstairs to check on Aiden. Entering his office, I discovered he was on a call.
“Every day you report no results strains my tolerance,” he said. “My patience has reached its limit. You know what I’m capable of, so get it done.”
There it was. The part of Aiden I didn’t always like. The part that could be cold and ruthless. I felt genuine sympathy for the person on the receiving end of his belligerence. I didn’t particularly enjoy being on the receiving end of it myself, yet there was something about that domineering side that made him that much hotter.
I studied him from head to toe—a vision standing near the floor to ceiling window, his feet planted firmly apart, one hand in his pocket, the other at his ear, holding the phone. He was wearing a dark blue suit, so perfectly tailored to his sculpted build that you couldn’t help but wonder about the body underneath it. I leaned against the door frame and listened, my lids closed as I focused on his velvet voice. When he became quiet, I opened my eyes and saw that he’d turned around and spotted me. He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Deciding I wasn’t in the mood for a concentrated dose of angry Aiden, I mouthed a goodnight, blew him a kiss, and headed to bed.
Over three hours later, it was nearly midnight and Aiden was still downstairs. I was hoping he’d come up, but as the minutes ticked by, the chances of that happening seemed less and less likely. I tried to go to sleep, but my mind wouldn’t let me. When I realized how much I really needed my husband, I reached for my phone.
Are you coming to bed anytime soon?
Not for a while. Why are you still awake? Go to sleep, princess.
Hell, if I could go to sleep, I’d already be asleep. It was going to be another B.O.B. kind of night, so I went to my nightstand. I’d decided on one of my favorite vibrators, but then tossed it back into the drawer. I was filled with a yearning that a piece of silicon couldn’t touch.
I hopped out of bed and grabbed the sexiest, most exposing piece of lingerie I owned. It was the vintage grey lace teddy I’d purchased after our honeymoon as a surprise for Aiden. If I had to rate it on a cock-hardening scale of one to ten, it would be off the charts. It was a two-piece lace set with an underwired teddy, matching thigh-highs and a G-string back. There were at least ten thin straps that had to be placed just right, so it wasn’t easy to slip on—it took time and patience, which I was running thin on. Although I hated to interrupt Aiden, and regardless of how busy he was, I knew Kingston would respond instantly, and I was looking forward to his undivided attention. After finagling my body into the little strips of fabric, I covered myself with a robe and started my mission.
“Make sure it’s done. Don’t contact me again until it is,” Aiden said, as I stood outside his office door. When I was sure the call had ended, I stepped in sight. Aiden was flipping through papers and stopping every so often to scribble something. I cleared my throat, and he looked up from the chaos of his desk.
He met my appearance with a frown. “Is everything okay?” he asked. “Why aren’t you in bed?”
That certainly wasn’t the reaction I was looking for. I didn’t answer him. Instead I stepped further into his office.
Moving closer to his desk, I released the tie on my robe and shrugged it off, letting the silk garment fall to the floor. Aiden’s expression was priceless. He was
smooth as per his normal self, but for a brief moment, he’d lost his composure, and then his eyes glided appreciatively over my body.
I took a seat on the floor in front of his desk, and with a sphinxlike smile on my face, I spread my legs. “Mr. Raine, since you won’t come to the pussy, the pussy is coming to you.”
Aiden reclined in the high back leather chair as his gaze continued to move over me. Reaching for his tie, he pulled it loose, his gaze lingering between my opened legs.
“I don’t think it’s wise to deprive your wife of what’s considered your husbandly duties,” I said. “Do you?”
Grabbing the near-empty cocktail glass from his desk, Aiden swirled the caramel colored liquid before taking a sip and returning his gaze to mine. “Isn’t Dianna still here?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said.
Aiden’s gaze narrowed as he cocked his head, his attention refocused on the space between my thighs. “Close the door,” he said. “And lock it.”
Now that was more like it. Judging from his expression, my not-so-subtle method of persuasion had met his approval. As a matter of fact, I had a feeling he was planning to give me more than I bargained for. And considering our recent encounters, where we’d walked away only partially sated, that suited me just fine.
I paused for a beat and then I closed my legs, my eyes never leaving the seductive allure of his. I mean seriously, how could they? It was always terribly difficult to tear my gaze away from Aiden’s. That task proved a hundred times more difficult when he looked at me as he did now—like I possessed the only thing in life he’d ever crave. I felt him on my skin—and he wasn’t even touching me.
A slow smile traced his lips as I turned away and moved into a crawling position. Casting a fleeting glance over my shoulder, I gauged his reaction. I wanted his hunger to yearn every part of me. I wanted the anticipation to build to a point of delirium. “You like?” I asked.
“What do you think?” he replied.
Moving at a snail’s pace, I made my way to the door, delighted that I was providing him with a sight that was sure to drive him crazy. The G-string allowed for minimal coverage, so his eyes would have been glued to my ass as I crawled away from him.
