Distilled Duplicity

by Louise Furley

  Chuckling at her ingenuous curiosity, he told her, “I’m kinda on the big side.” At her eyes rounding in unease, not wanting her to be afraid of him all over again, he said with a heated smile, “Women are designed to adapt, my little lamb, you will be able to take all of me.”

  Her hand stroked down then back up, Naithon growled roughly, “Baby, you turn me on more than anything ever,” he rambled almost incoherently, “more than my first time at twelve with the housekeeper when I was just a pup.” He groaned, “Sorry,” then grumbled when her hand stalled. “I didn’t mean to say that, to bring another woman into our bed so to speak. I never thought of her exactly as a woman, just the housekeeper that initiated me.”

  A shade of anger crept in her voice, she murmured fiercely, “You were too young, she should have been arrested. Did you tell your father?”

  A chuckle eased out of his rasp, “Honey, he’s the one who sent her to me. Come, don’t stop,” he cuddled her breasts with both hands, bent and nipped a budded nipple.

  With a sultry sigh, Kiri kissed then licked his forehead while he nibbled on her breasts; her hand grew more confident and stronger as she stroked his manhood. Naithon buried his face between her full breasts, roughly kneading and suckling them in a building frenzy of hunger, but then his strength was too hard.

  She whimpered and unconsciously squeezed his dick. Naithon gasped and grabbed her wrist, pulled it away from his throbbing member. His breath hissed damned hard and fast, one more squeeze like that and he would come in her hand. Not the way he wanted to introduce her to love making.

  She looked quizzically up at him. “Did I hurt you? Did I do something wrong, Naithon?”

  Laughing, he painfully tucked himself back in and did his pants up. “No, baby, but I don’t want to come like that, and we need to go, or I’m gonna fuck you in this chair. And, that ain’t gonna happen.” He bent, kissed each breast, then pulled the bra cups up and closed her blouse. “You need to button it, lamb, my fingers are too big and too shaking to do it.”

  Watching her, he thought, that was the first time he’d ever necked or petted, whatever it’s called. Since jumping right in with the housekeeper, he never had to start from first base with girls, women. Didn’t need to and never cared to.

  But with his lamb, he smiled at her awkwardly buttoning her blouse with shaking fingers, hell; they were sort of learning intimacy together. She was certainly all and so much more than he had thought before taking her. It was almost like he had been saving parts of himself…for her.

  After demolishing the cake, they packed everything up, the paints, the food, and were waiting out front as the limo pulled up. The ride home found Kiri nestled against Naithon, his arm around her, they held hands and dreamy smiles. The driver grinned in the rearview before closing the door between the compartments.

  It was late when they arrived home, but his friends were up and waiting for them. Naithon had to endure Mazonn, Yashin and Vlad grinning like donkeys at him when he came in with her wrapped in his arms.

  Ignoring their teasing chuckles, he took her upstairs. She was almost asleep when he herded her into the bathroom to change and get ready for bed. For the first time since he took her, Naithon slid into bed content and feeling positive about what was happening with them. Stockholm shit aside, didn’t matter, whatever it was, it was working. Sure he was seducing her into wanting him, but now she did, and that’s all that mattered.

  She was asleep by the time he climbed in. Coiling his arm around her, like every night, he pulled her back against his chest. His legs curling under hers, he slipped his hand under her shirt and possessively grasped her chubby breast in his greedy palm, and quickly dozed off.

  Chapter Twenty

  Naithon stopped by the next day from work to lunch with Kiri. When he had left before dawn that morning, her head was buried in a pillow. He’d placed a soft kiss somewhere in her mass of hair and headed to work.

  She was at the dining table already when he returned, Mazonn beside her. Lunch was generally a buffet. A dozen or so other people were seated eating and talking.

  Naithon noticed a man standing between Kiri and Mazonn. Maz must have had some concern regarding this because his arm was laid across the back of her chair like a cage around her.

  Feelings of possessive jealousy rolled over Naithon again like they had the other day, tightening his gut, he choked them down, Maz was his best friend, he would never poach. But the asshole standing there, what was his game?

  Approaching the table, Naithon observed the man bending down to Kiri speaking only to her. Mazonn’s jaw worked and he appeared to be about to stand up and back the guy off, when Kiri saw Naithon. Her face lit up with a natural happy smile that reached her gorgeous eyes, and his heart crimped with joy and tenderness.

  A broad smile eased the tightness in his belly, she was genuinely happy to see him. How could he have ever thought he could have a life with her and not enjoy, desire, need, her affection?

  Mazonn hadn’t seen him come in and was getting to his feet. The other man who was a relatively new employee, snarled belligerently at Maz. Apparently he was about to get a lesson in hitting on the boss’ woman. But it was Naithon who was going to give it, Kiri was his.

  By the time he reached the table, Kiri’s smile had dimmed at the darkness in Naithon’s fierce face. Mazonn placed his hard, hulking body between Kiri and the man. Neither male saw Naithon approach, until Kiri murmured, “Naithon.”

  Maz turned to see Naithon, and Naithon knew he’d been right in his assumption. Maz was furious, face rigid, jaw still working. He may have a mischievous side and twinkling blue eyes, but he was as quick and lethal a killer as Naithon. They had grown up in the gang and then prison together, watching each other’s backs.

  “Maz,” the quiet calm in his voice belied the fury snaking through Naithon’s body about to unleash. There was something disturbing going on concerning his Kiri and he will do anything to protect her. Anything.

  The man gave Naithon a sneering pugnacious glare. “What the fuck, Adranokov, is wrong with your man here? The bitches are here for us to bang. I want this one, and this prick is trying to run me off.” Thirty-something, he was big with the requisite tough appearance. Neat braids scrolled tightly down his head, tattoos ravaged much of his dark skin and a few painted along with a deep scar beneath one chocolate brown, glaring eye.

  Naithon tramped around the table coming to a stop near the men.

  Mazonn grinned, then moved to the other side of Kiri. Discreetly, he clasped her arm and pulled her gently to her feet.

  Voice cool and even, Naithon said to the man, “That’s Mr. Adranokov to you. Did Mazonn tell you she was the boss’ woman?”

  The man’s dark eyes shifted from Mazonn’s grin to Naithon’s harsh expression, his mouth tightened in slight apprehension. Still with bravado, he said, “So what? You share like everyone else. Silver’s upstairs fucking Antonio and Eugene right now.”

  Rage bubbled in Naithon’s voice that lowered in imminent threat. “Don’t give a fuck about Silver. She is not my woman, her,” he snapped his head towards Kiri, “she is my woman. No one touches my fucking woman, Andre. They do, they die.”

  Seeing the menace in Naithon’s coal black eyes, Andre balked, cleared his throat. “Uh, well, you expect a man to come to you and ask to plow her? Well, I’m asking. I’ll bring her right back to you when I’m done with her.”

  Kiri gasped. Grin expanding, Maz wound his fingers around Kiri’s upper arm and said cheerfully, “Time to go, honey.” He pulled her away from Naithon and Andre, and towards the exit of the dining area.

  “Wait, Maz,” Kiri craned her neck to look back at Naithon, “aren’t we going to wait for Naithon?”

  “Nope,” Maz said, drawing Kiri down the hall to the grand room. “He’ll come in a minute, there’s something he has to do first.”

  “No, but wait, Maz, I don’t understand, what’s going on? Why do we have to leave?” She tried to pull back, make him
stop, but the man towered over her, if he wanted her to walk, she’d walk, he towed her along.

  “Hush, now,” he told her as they reached the grand room. “We’re gonna sit down and wait here.”

  Puzzled, Kiri made a move to return to the dining area, when Mazonn’s friendly face hardened, eyes tapered exhibiting a cold command, he stood in front of her. She could go nowhere but to sit in the chair he had steered her to. “But Maz-”

  “It’s men stuff, Kiri, Naithon doesn’t want you exposed to that shit.”

  “But why not?”

  Maz looked heavenward, muttered, “God save me from falling into this female snare that has caught my friend.” He smiled wryly at her, “Kiri, that man was hitting on you. I told him to buzz off, he didn’t go. I told him you were Nait’s and Nait ain’t gonna share, he didn’t budge. Everyone here knows you are off limits.

  “Even if you weren’t Nait’s, the jerk still shouldn’t have approached you because clearly you were there with me. He didn’t know I was there for your protection, still, trying to take you away to fuck when I’m sitting there and I had said no was disrespectful to me. And, ah, Nait’s gonna give him a lesson in respect.”

  Eyes wide as she comprehended that Naithon was going to fight with the man she cried, “Oh, Maz, what if he hurts Naithon? You have to help him!”

  The laugh burst from Maz, he wiped an eye with mirth regarding her frightened face. “Honey, no one in this land can best Naithon Adranokov. He learned to fight on the streets with the worst of the worst, and he’s strong as an ox, fast as a jungle cat, ain’t nothing to worry about.”

  Ten minutes passed while Kiri sat anxiously chewing on a nail. On a chair next to her, Maz sprawled comfortably, hands folded loosely in his lap, eyes almost closed as if he were drifting off to sleep with nary a worry in the world.

  Kiri was about to get up and go back to the dining room when Naithon appeared through the archway. He carried a box and came right over to them.

  Setting the box down on a table, without touching her, he leaned over and kissed Kiri, long, lingering, too long, Mazonn grumbled, reminding them of his presence. “You bring us sustenance, bro?”

  Naithon broke the kiss, then gave her another quick peck and moved the table so they could eat at it. He pulled out sandwiches, macaroni salad, pickles, chips and sodas.

  Groaning, “Mmm,” Maz licked his chops, said, “I’m starving,” and snatched up a sandwich and took a huge bite making Kiri giggle.

  “Nice, Maz, how ‘bout some manners?” Naithon chided, handing a sandwich on a plate to Kiri.

  Speaking through the food in his mouth, Maz countered, “This coming from ‘Mr. Let’s Pound Their Faces In Before Asking Questions’.”

  Biting his sandwich almost in half, food stuffed in one cheek, Naithon retorted, “We don’t tussle when there are ladies present.”

  Mazonn opened a soda and handed it to Kiri. “Speaking of tussles, you have a conversation with Andre?”

  “Hmm,” Naithon mumbled, side-eyed Kiri then frowned at Mazonn.

  “It’s okay,” Maz assured him. “She knows you were going to give him a beating. You washed your hands but should have changed your sweater,” he nodded at the blood stain on Naithon’s sweater.

  Naithon looked down and swore, “Damn, gonna be hell for Laundry to get that stain out.”

  Her fingers covering her mouth, Kiri said softly, “Oh, Naithon.”

  Scowling at Maz, Naithon growled, “You know better than to talk about that shit around her.”

  Ignoring his friend’s ire, Maz grinned. “It was adorable, Nait. She was worried Andre was going to beat you up. She asked me to go save you.”

  Cocking his head to send Kiri a look of disbelief, Naithon shook his head. “Let’s not talk about it anymore. Andre says he will be more respectful from now on, and he said he wouldn’t dream of attempting to fuck his boss’ woman again,” and he tossed some chips in his mouth.

  “Before or after he gets out of the hospital?”

  Naithon shot him a look that said ‘shut up.’ Washing the chips down with soda he muttered, “When he gets out of the basement, no hospital for pricks that fuck with my shit.”

  “You calling Kiri, shit?”

  Kiri’s head went back and forth between the men like watching ping pong.

  When she wasn’t looking at him, Naithon gave his friend the finger, and rolled his eyes heavenward at Mazonn’s smirk.

  Biting the end of a pickle, Kiri asked, “Who’s Silver?”

  The men shared a look. Maz grinned.

  Irritation and a speck of worry reddened the tips of Naithon’s ears. Damn. He’d hoped by keeping her away from the people at the mansion she wouldn’t know he had fucked a few of the women there. That information could in no way benefit their budding relationship.

  Picking up the container of macaroni salad, Naithon said blandly, “No one important.” He plopped a spoonful on Kiri’s plate, added some to his own plate and handed the container to Maz with a frown of warning.

  His grin as big and troublemaking as always, Maz took the container and spooned a heaping pile of noodles on his plate.

  Before she could inquire further about Silver, Naithon quickly started talking about the upcoming football game. He and Maz chattered about the game while Kiri pondered who Silver was and why Naithon didn’t want to talk about her. She remembered Francy had mentioned Silver too and never answered Kiri as to who she was.

  As they were finishing, Naithon’s cell rang. He answered it, and his mouth tensed. Muttering, “Ja,” he put the phone back.

  “Nait?” Maz watched the dread in Naithon’s gaze swerve to Kiri. Her brows rose in question.

  “Baby,” he put a hand on her thigh, “your da…”

  Panic gushed, she gripped his sleeve. “What? What’s happened to my father? Is he…” She didn’t dare say it.

  Naithon stood up and pulled her to her feet. “No, but he’s in bad shape. He’s at Holy Cross, he’s been poisoned.”

  “Why is he at the public hospital and not with his own physician?” Mazonn asked, tossing the remnants of their lunch into the box.

  “He was in a restaurant when he keeled, one of the servers panicked and called an ambulance. Come, Kiri, I’ll take you upstairs and I will go see about his condition.”

  She tugged her arm from his grasp, head shaking she declared, “No, I’m going to the hospital.”

  Brows lowered, his jaw rigid, Naithon replied, “No you are not. You are staying here. It won’t be safe for you there. Now, come with me.” He reached for her hand but she yanked it out of his reach.

  “Naithon, if you don’t take me to the hospital, I swear I will never talk to you again, and you will never touch me again.”

  Angry eyes narrowed, he warned, “Don’t threaten me, Kiri, you know you can’t stop me from doing what I want.” They glared at each other.

  Kiri crossed her arms. “You want to force me to kiss you, to not respond to your caresses? Not feel my hands, my mouth…on…your…body?”

  Mazonn’s gulp was audible. Grin lopsided, he said, “I’ll go get the car ready and a crew to go with us,” and split, fast.

  “Kiri-”

  “I mean it, Naithon. Did you like what we did yesterday?” His head nodded like a puppy wanting its favorite toy. “Do you want more of that between us? My touching you, and wanting, enjoying your hands on my body?” She stared at him, until he broke.

  “Oh, fuck, Kiri,” the air blew out of his lungs in resignation. A month ago he wouldn’t have blinked at her threats. She was there for his pleasure whether she wanted it or not. Now, when he’d discovered how sweet, how agonizingly amazing it was when she responded to his hands on her, his kisses, and Dio, her hand on his dick. He was not giving that up. He’d just have to be extra bloody careful to ensure her safety.

  “Get a jacket, one for me too,” he said with an aggravated sigh, handing her the keys to the security doors and their room.

  On her
toes, she kissed his cheek, whispered, “Thank you, Naithon,” and then rushed to the stairs.

  Pulling his phone from his pocket, he grimaced. He could not believe that hard, violent criminals cowered in fear of him, and delicate, dainty Kiri Delducci bravely stood up in his face, even though she was still afraid of him.

  Mouth twitching, his head shook in begrudging mirth, he muttered, “That little girl has teeny, tiny, lady balls. Damn, that’s hot.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  They drove in a caravan, the Lincoln with bulletproof glass was dead center; Naithon was taking no chances of an ambush. Last thing he wanted was to take Kiri out of his house, and to the damned hospital with its hundreds of people and numerous exits.

  He’d called his IT guy, well, hacker, for a schematic of the hospital when they got in the car so he’d know where all the exits were.

  Naithon closed the car door in Kiri’s pouting face. She wasn’t getting out until he secured the place. She was anxious and impatient to see her father, but she was lucky Naithon allowed her to be there at all, so she was going to cool her heels in the car until he was satisfied the hospital was secured. The whole incident could have been created just to draw her out of his house.

  He saw her make a frustrated and annoyed face when she tried to open the door and it was locked. She would not be able to unlock it. Only Naithon, the driver, and his head capos had key remotes that locked and unlocked all the doors.

  His cell phone buzzed, swiping it on, he said, “Ja.”

  “Boss, it’s Ken Kenav, your cane-fields manager.”

  “I know, Ken, caller ID. What’s up?”

  “First, let me say it’s all under control-”

  “What is? What-”

  “Boss, the north field near the forest was on fire. We put most of it out before the firetrucks arrived. I was up to my ears in smoke is why I didn’t call you right away-”

  Naithon cut him off again with a terse, “How much damage?”

  “Listen, Boss, not much, not even a quarter of an acre. The thing is, there was a body-”