by BJ Wane
“Sir?”
He addressed the quiver in her voice first. “You trust me, sugar, or else you wouldn’t have been coming to me. That’s what you were doing when you lost control on the slick highway, wasn’t it?”
Avery turned her head and peeked up at him out of one eye. “How… how’d you know? You wouldn’t let me explain.”
“If you’ll recall, some of my first words to you were how good I am at reading women. Deep breath.” He brought the paddle down across both buttocks, the snap against bare skin almost as loud as her gasp as she buried her head face down again between her arms. Her hips swayed, and he swatted her again, enjoying both the movement and the bright red swath against the paleness of the rest of her flesh. “My heart must’ve stopped for several seconds when I saw you trudging up my drive, soaked and freezing wearing nothing but that jacket.” Whack! Whack! “I’m too old to suffer such stress.” A tiny laugh shook her shoulders before she cried out with the next blow. “It’s not funny, Avery. You’ve led me on a merry chase, and that ends now.” Whack! Whack!
“I… I’m sorry, Master Grayson!” The apology sounded wrenched from her throat, her use of his title prompting him to toss aside the paddle and reach for the condom off the end table.
“I believe you, sugar,” he rasped, kneeling behind her crimson ass. A low moan and another shift of her hips accompanied the slow rub of his hand over her burning backside, her glistening slit drawing his eyes and his cock as he worked to sheath himself with one hand. “Another deep breath,” he instructed. Latching onto her hips, he drove into her, fast and deep, slaking a thirst too long denied and not yet appeased.
Another cry spilled from the cocoon of her buried face as she squeezed her hands together and rocked her hips against his thrusting pelvis, joining him in the age-old dance of carnal fucking. Along with the crackling, spitting flames, their hips pounding together, the ramming strokes of his rigid flesh into her accepting, wet pussy, his heaving grunts and her mewling whimpers reverberated in the room. The plug made her even tighter, the snug confines of her pussy threatening to end this way too soon.
“Fucking A, you just might be the death of me,” Grayson grunted, Avery’s slick heat a burning vise as the tight grip of her vaginal muscles clamped around him. She cried out, her whole body shaking as she gushed over his pistoning cock with the release of her climax, pulling his orgasm from his balls and up his erection.
Arching his head back, he shut his eyes and basked in the pleasure of her surrendering, spasming body. His thumbs dug into her hot, reddened buttocks for more anchorage against the mind-numbing ecstasy she wrought, and he prayed he survived the onslaught enough to take her again soon.
Avery’s buttocks throbbed from the abuse Master Grayson had heaped upon them, her body shook under the force of his slamming hips and her pussy and rectum quivered around his cock and the plug. The warmth and tingles running up and down the walls of her butt clenching around the plug matched the pulsations in her sheath rippling around the steel rod of his stroking shaft. She basked in his rough possession as much now as she had in the shower, pleased with herself for having passed his test of leaving her with nothing to don after their shower, giving her no choice but to face him in a state of vulnerable nakedness as he laid out the terms for their relationship going forward.
As she crumpled onto the rug in a heap of blissful ecstasy that challenged her sanity, he covered her prone, shaking body with his, scraping his teeth over one shoulder. “I don’t think I can feel my toes.”
Avery felt Grayson lift and twist as he replied, “Don’t worry, they’re still there. Let me know when you’re able to get up. I’m starving.”
Her stomach took that announcement as its cue to let out a loud rumble, revealing her own state of hunger. She huffed a quiet laugh. “I didn’t realize I am too until now.”
“Be right back.”
Grayson slid to the side, removed the plug and then pushed off her. She rolled over to see him hiking up his jeans as he strolled down the hall. Lying in front of the fire, her body still pulsating from head to toe, she tried not to think about the clutch around her heart that kept growing tighter the more she was with him. Yes, she trusted him with her knowledge of Darren and Chad’s crimes and the fears that came from having that knowledge, but that didn’t mean she believed she meant any more to him than the other women he had taken up with. His offer to help her stemmed more from protectiveness toward those facing peril than from personal feelings, and she needed to ensure she didn’t forget that.
He returned carrying one of his black tee shirts, a small smile curling his mouth as he tossed it down on top of her. “You can slip that on for now. Stay here where it’s warmest and I’ll bring over something to eat.” Walking toward the kitchen, he asked over his shoulder, “A steak and potato okay?”
“More than,” she answered, her mouth watering at the thought.
After slipping on the shirt, she scooted around until her back was to the fire and she could watch him in the kitchen. Light smoke billowed upward into the overhead exhaust above an indoor grill as he placed two huge steaks onto the heat. He looked as comfortable and at ease flipping meat shirtless in his kitchen as he did wearing all black and exerting his control at the club. Avery found the different facets of his personality fascinating and the sheriff, the Dom and the considerate host equally likable. Grayson’s casual acceptance of her troubles and willingness to examine the files she’d run off with had gone a long way toward lightening that burden but now she hoped they could put off coming up with a possible solution. She would like more time with him here in Willow Springs before having to say goodbye.
“What’s that look for?” Grayson asked, carrying over two plates and silverware.
Avery hesitated only a second before giving him more of the trust and honesty he kept insisting on. “I was just wondering how much longer I’ll be here, in Montana.” Near you.
Settling on the rug in front of her, he handed over one plate, those observant eyes focused on her face as he replied, “That will be up to you once I ensure your ex and his partner are no longer a threat to you.”
“And what if you can’t do that?” Her breath burned in her lungs as she waited for his answer.
“I will,” he returned in a hardened tone. “Eat.”
Digging into the thick steak, cooked medium rare and tasting better than anything she’d ordered out, Avery answered Grayson’s probing personal questions about where she really hailed from and then about her life growing up in Chicago. He steered clear of what she’d overheard between Darren and Chad until she’d eaten every bite of steak and potato and he rose to take her plate.
With a tug on her hair, he stated, “I cooked, you do dishes while I look at your flash drive and check in with my deputies.”
“Don’t you want me to look at it with you?” Standing, Avery shivered as she stepped away from the fire to pick up her purse where he’d tossed it onto a chair.
“No. I want to read through it without your input as IA will do.” He pointed to a door off the kitchen. “Laundry’s in there. Your clothes should be dry.”
Handing him the drive, she swallowed past a sudden lump in her throat. “Thank you. Even if… whatever happens… I appreciate…”
Grayson cut off her stumbling gratitude with his mouth, swallowing her low moan as she leaned on his strength and let him take her over. She would take whatever she could get, for as long as she could, she vowed as he slid one hand under the shirt to grip her sore butt. God help her but she loved that possessive hold, and so many other things about him she was beginning to realize.
“Give me twenty minutes,” he said after releasing her and taking the flash drive, leaving her standing there with tingling lips and a throbbing buttock, watching him go into the first door on the right in the hall.
With another shiver, Avery went to pull her clothes from the dryer and get dressed before returning to the kitchen to load the dishwasher. A sound on the front
porch drew her gaze out the window as she was wiping down the counter and she spotted the scrawny wolf/dog, Lobo pacing back and forth. She looked down at the two bones left from their steaks and pulling on the small ounce of bravery she’d unearthed earlier that day, she grabbed them and dashed to the front door.
“Okay fella, be nice,” she murmured, standing half in, half out of the doorway. Lobo stood cocking his head but didn’t attempt to come closer. “There, that’s a good boy.” Holding out a bone, she resisted the temptation to toss it to him. If she ever returned to her life in Chicago, or faced Darren, she needed to work on building her courage. Damn it, she sighed as the animal took the treat from her. There went that pang again, the one that always seemed to grip her whenever she thought of leaving.
Avery waited until he settled down under the same tree in the yard where she’d first seen him before tossing him the second bone. Stepping back, she closed the door, turned and saw Grayson standing a few feet away, arms crossed over that wide, muscled chest, eyes glittering with an unnamed emotion that curled her toes inside her warm socks.
“What?” she squeaked as he approached with slow, measured steps, her heartbeat ratcheting up along with the heated rush of her blood.
“You surprise me, sugar. Sometimes in ways I don’t care for. Others, in ways I like, a lot.” Reaching for her hand, he pivoted and pulled her behind him. “Come on.”
“Where? I thought we were going to discuss…”
“Later,” Grayson tossed over his shoulder as he hauled her into his room and gave her a friendly push onto the bed. Coming down on top of her, he growled, “Much later.” Avery giggled, the sound easing the last of his strained emotions since discovering who she was two nights ago. Watching her hold out a shaking hand to Lobo, her face pale but taut with determination, sent a wave of uncontrollable lust through him as his heart rolled over in his chest. So this is what it feels like to topple into love, he mused, not at all displeased with the revelation.
“I thought men your age needed more time in between…” she bucked her hips under him, “starting up again.”
He narrowed his eyes and softened his tone to a silky purr. “Minx. You should know better by now not to push me.”
“And if I don’t?” she gasped as he stripped her jeans off.
“Then suffer the consequences.”
Chapter 12
“Thanks for coming over.” Grayson closed his office door behind Dan and gestured to a chair in front of his desk before resuming his seat behind it.
“No problem. What’s up? Does this have to do with the rustlers, or Connor?” Concern shadowed the lawyer’s eyes, something Grayson shared with him only he had more on his mind this morning than his injured friend and cattle thieves.
“No, another problem. Avery’s got trouble.”
Those dark eyes sharpened even though Dan assumed a casual pose of leaning back in the chair and crossing one booted ankle over his opposite knee. “Legal trouble?”
“Maybe, if it gets that far. I prefer this to stay between us for now. Caden has enough to deal with with his brother laid up.” When he got Dan’s nod, Grayson revealed Avery’s story, leaving nothing out. “Before I start snooping around the Chicago police department, I need to know what she can be charged with, considering everything.”
A low whistle blew past Dan’s lips as he removed his Stetson and hung it on his bent knee. “Depends on if, and how well these assholes frame her. If it ends up being just hacking, we can always plead extenuating circumstances. I can get her off on that charge if we can take these guys down. As far as she knows, right now it’s just he says, she says, correct?”
Grayson nodded. “Yes, but she’s been gone for over six weeks. No telling what the bastards have been up to in that time.”
Dan shrugged. “Maybe nothing. Even if her ex was suspicious of the way she took off without a word or thought she knew more than made him comfortable, he would have been a fool to jump the gun and come after her in any way that called more attention to her, or their relationship.”
“That’s my thought. If he played it smart, he’d show concern about her whereabouts or make up a story about them splitting up. But if IA now questions him and his partner?” Grayson’s jaw went rigid as he thought of the jeopardy Avery had placed herself in by sending those files to IA. Despite the risk of that department suspecting her right from the get-go, she had alerted Lancaster and Banks she was through with hiding.
“I can tell by your face you know the answer to that. They may not be willing to ignore her any longer. Best case scenario – the two of them cut their losses and leave the country.”
“That would make this too fucking easy to resolve.” Grayson sighed, running one hand through his hair.
Dan slapped his hat back on and got to his feet. “Do some discreet investigating and get back to me. I’ll help in whatever way I can. She’s a sweetheart, and much braver than I would have labeled her, considering everything.”
“Yeah, she is, and I’ll make sure she stays safe.”
With a thumbs up as he pivoted to leave, Dan returned, “We both will. Later.”
Chicago – two days later
Darren slid into the passenger seat of Chad’s car, slammed the door and threw the bag of cocaine and money on the floor in a fit of temper. “Fuck!”
Starting the car, Chad pulled out of the apartment complex parking lot as he bit out, “What now?”
“Her apartment has been rented out to someone else following, I’m sure, a thorough cleaning. Since the landlord stored her things, I couldn’t very well stash the stuff now. Bitch,” he swore.
“I warned you,” Chad reminded him.
“Shut up. Hell, I never imagined that meek mouse would get up the nerve to contact IA, not with the chance it could backfire on her.”
Surprise and fury didn’t begin to describe what both Darren and Chad had felt when Internal Affairs called them in that morning and asked them to look at the contradicting reports e-mailed by an anonymous sender over the weekend. Wesley, the detective in charge of investigating both the source and the discrepancies, hadn’t appeared suspicious of either them or Avery, but that meant nothing. So far, they hadn’t drilled Darren on his relationship with Avery or questioned him about her abrupt resignation, but that was only a matter of time.
“We either need to split the country and retire early or track her down, and I, for one, am not ready to cash in. Close, but not yet, not if I want to have enough to spend the next thirty years on a warm island with no extradition back here,” Darren said. “I’ll start combing through airline and bus rosters, see what I can find.”
Chad turned into the parking garage of their condo building where they each enjoyed their own place. “No need. Pack up and get ready for a long drive on Friday. We’re going to Montana.”
“What the hell for?” Darren snapped, not bothering to stifle his worry and irritation.
“Because that’s where I traced your fucking girlfriend. She got a speeding ticket heading west on the highway between Billings and some bumfuck place called Willow Springs. We start there. Since we’re off on Friday due to the stakeout tomorrow night, that will give us just enough time to drive there, take care of her and get back here late Sunday night.”
Darren sent his partner a questioning frown as they walked toward the elevator. “She doesn’t drive, or at least not since I’ve known her. I didn’t even know she had a license let alone a car.”
“It seems there’s a lot you don’t know about Avery Pierce,” Chad shot back.
Darren punched the number for his floor without commenting. Damned if Chad wasn’t right. Again.
For the fifth morning in a row, Avery awoke in Grayson’s bed, spooned with her buttocks nestled against his groin as he rubbed his cock between them. She pushed back, loving the feel of his rigid hardness gliding up her damp seam to spread her juices along the sensitive path and over her rear entrance.
“You’re almost ready to t
ake me here,” he whispered in her ear as he thrust his cock head against her anus, his deep voice and tight hold around her waist drawing a shiver.
“So you keep saying.” She wasn’t sure if she was looking forward to that new experience or dreading it, only that she was tired of waiting.
“I’ll fuck your ass when I think you’re ready and not before. In the meantime…” Rolling her beneath him, he shackled her wrists above her head and crushed her mouth with his, swallowing her breathy moan.
Avery bucked beneath him and he pinned her hips with his, dipping his head to one straining nipple. The sharp sting from his bite fed her arousal as much as his tight hold, making it easy for him to slide his now sheathed erection between her slick folds. She wrapped her legs around his hips and locked her ankles, his lower back muscles bunching under her heels as he reared back and began the steady, pounding rhythm she had come to crave.
I love waking this way. The idle admission slithered past the slow fogging of her brain as he drove into her quivering sheath over and over. He’d surprised her Monday morning when he’d driven her into town to pick up her car at the tow shop and she discovered he’d paid for new snow tires to replace the worn treads. A warmth had invaded her chest when he’d announced she would stay with him without offering her a chance to refuse or putting a time limit on it. Happiness she hadn’t felt in ages, if ever, filled her with joy when he’d taken her out to eat at the steakhouse, the only pricey, fine dining establishment in Willow Springs. After lots of wine and a decadent filet mignon topped with an even more decadent chocolate cheesecake, they’d driven out to Caden’s to play cards with him, Sydney and Connor who was still bunking at their place. He’d been so attentive, overprotective and demanding the past few days, she didn’t know whether to bask in his undivided attention or smack him for not sparing her time to make a move without him or his permission.
