Family Bonds- Eli and Bella (Amore Island Book 6)

by Natalie Ann

  It was growing every year and was a niche Eli was trying to cash in on. She wanted to help him do that. It was the least she could do.

  And if it bled over to more revenue for the island as a whole, she realized that was just as important to Eli as his casino.

  Family came first to him. Something she never felt she had and experiencing the little bit she was now was making her crave more...like wanting three Kit Kat bars after a depressing day.

  “That was wonderful,” Eli said, his plate empty. Hers matched.

  “Thank you. Now I can clean up.”

  “No,” he said. “You can relax and I’ll clean up. You did all the cooking. It’s the least I can do.”

  She giggled and slapped her hand over her mouth, wondering how that foreign sound escaped. “Sorry. Just the thought of you doing that made me laugh.”

  He lifted an eyebrow at her. “I know how to clean and do my laundry and put dishes away. I’ve been known to scrub a toilet now and again too. My mother made sure we could all take care of ourselves.”

  “A good trait to have. And while you are doing that, then I’m going to go get ready in your bedroom if you don’t mind.”

  “You’ve got to get ready?” he asked.

  “My whips should be straightened out of my bag so the leather can breathe.”

  The smile fell from his face, a look of astonishment on it. “Whips?” He tilted his head. “I’m not normally that far off on my judgment of people and now I’m starting to wonder. Especially since you referred earlier to not being that way.”

  She shook her head. “Oh, Eli.”

  She walked away. He’d find out he was right on his assessment of her. She’d never been one to even bust on a man about something like that. And though it was fun to see his reaction, she was positive she’d never be able to pull the trigger on it.

  Instead she went into his bathroom and pulled the little ivory lace teddy out of the bag that she’d stopped at the boutique to buy today.

  Once she was changed she walked out of the bathroom and saw him standing against the doorframe watching her entrance. She wondered if he was truly looking for the whips.

  “Now that is what I was expecting. More like hoping for,” he said, pushing away from the door and moving closer to her.

  “Really?”

  “You said you like fancy underclothes. I lumped this in the same category.”

  “So you like it?” she asked, turning for him.

  “If you let your eyes drift down you’d have your answer,” he said.

  She did what he said and saw the evidence standing up in his shorts. “Then I think you need to let me see more of it.”

  He pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it toward the chair, then let his shorts and underwear follow. “I feel even more underdressed now.”

  “Don’t,” she said. “I’ve got one thing on. One thing that doesn’t even need to be removed.”

  He moved to stand right in front of her, his fingertips trailing down the front of her, over her breast, down her waist and in between her legs.

  He felt for the snaps, then pulled them fast, opening her teddy up.

  She didn’t have a chance to say or do anything before he was thrusting two fingers inside of her.

  She gasped and held onto his shoulders as he curled his finger and found that damn spot again causing her knees to almost buckle.

  “Jesus,” she said.

  “You like that, don’t you?”

  There was no reason to respond when he knew the answer.

  Her hands moved from his shoulders to his cock and gripped him hard, then started to stroke him to the same rhythm as his fingers were pumping into her.

  “I’m not sure I can stand much longer. My legs feel like limp noodles.”

  “I’m not stopping,” he said. His voice sounded harsh, as if he was holding on by a string too.

  “Then neither am I.”

  “It’s a competition?” he asked.

  “You’re making it one,” she squealed as he stopped and found that spot again.

  “You’re going to come first,” he said.

  “No, I’m not.”

  She moved her hand faster and brought her other down to cup his balls. When had she ever been this aggressive or outspoken before when it came to sex?

  Never!

  But there was no stopping the words coming out of her mouth. Or minutes later when the fluid drenched Eli’s fingers followed by him coming on her hand.

  Her knees started to bend, but she forced herself to stand.

  Eli didn’t give her a chance to move before he had her in his arms and on the bed. “Now you’re right where I want you.”

  Where she wanted to be, but didn’t add that. No reason to at this point. She’d like to believe he knew that.

  His mouth went to hers, his hands in her hair.

  He was grinding against her while their tongues tangled and danced.

  She was worked up just as high as she was before she came.

  She twisted under him, then turned so that he was on his back. “Where’s the condom?”

  He nodded his head to the bedside table. She opened the drawer and pulled one out, covered him, then moved the little bit of lace out of the way and dropped down on him.

  “Would you be upset if I ripped that off of you?”

  No man had ever done that before to her. Either they were never tempted enough or were afraid she’d be upset.

  “Not at all. Go right at it.”

  She stopped moving when his hands went to the front and tore the lace right down the center, her breasts exposed, his fingers going to her nipples and starting to pinch and pluck at them, holding on tight.

  The faster she rode him, the tighter the pull. She was almost causing her pleasure without even knowing it.

  But Eli knew. She could tell by the look on his face.

  She could also see he was barely holding on. “Touch yourself,” he said.

  She’d never done that in front of a man before either, but didn’t hesitate to put her hand down between her legs and rub the flapping lace right into her swollen bud.

  The combination of the material against her overheated skin, Eli’s cock stretching her out and his fingers on her nipples had her eyes all but crossing, her head falling back and a screech coming out of her mouth.

  His hands dropped away from her breasts, going to her hips and holding her in place as he pounded up into her, then let out a primal moan.

  She fell on his chest, both exhausted and pleased at the same time.

  21

  Tender Wildcat

  The last place Eli thought he’d be the next day was taking a chopper ride with Bella to Hailey’s office in Boston.

  But between what Griffin reported to him this morning after his talk with Adam and Hailey calling to say she had some information on Bella’s family, he figured it was best to all meet in person.

  “You didn’t need to take the time to come with me,” Bella said. “I could have taken the ferry over and gotten a taxi to Hailey’s office.”

  “You could have, but I’ve got some news too.”

  “And you’re just telling me now?” she all but snapped. Long gone was the tender wildcat that slept in his bed all night.

  He heard Egan laugh through his headset and shot his brother a glare to keep his mouth shut.

  He’d never been one to cuddle but could if the woman he was with wanted it. Not Bella. She was on one side of the bed sprawled out, him on the other.

  He supposed that went to show her independent nature and maybe her complete trust in him.

  Though you wouldn’t know that by the look she was sending his way now. Or the smirk on his brother’s face letting him know he’d be getting busted on that too.

  “I found out a few hours ago. Then you said Hailey called you and asked to meet today, so why not say it all at once.”

  “I suppose,” she said. “Or is it more about a power play like you are us
ed to doing in business to get the upper hand?” He wanted to frown at her and argue, but she cut off his attempt to talk. “Is it anything serious with Uncle Oliver?”

  The worry he was trying to avoid was in her eyes. And he wanted to say that was why he waited but held it back. She wouldn’t believe him anyway. “No,” he could honestly say. What he had was rumblings but not fact. It was still more than they had days ago. Even weeks ago.

  The chopper landed, Egan shutting it off. “I’m busy for the next several hours. If you want to wait, let me know or you can try to hop a ride back on a charter if there is room with Linc.”

  Lincoln Harrington was Egan’s other pilot on the island.

  “I’ll let you know. Worst case we can take the ferry. It’s not like I haven’t before.”

  “Not often,” Egan said, moving in the other direction than Bella and he were heading.

  They got in his SUV and drove to Hailey’s office in downtown Boston. A prime location that drew in a lot of business for her, he was sure. Not that she needed to. She had dozens of lawyers working for her here and two more on the island. Most of her work dealt with Bond business, but she still liked to go to court if she could and had to sit in on other trials and cases.

  His family said he never slept and was a workaholic, but they weren’t comparing him to Hailey Bond.

  “You’re quiet,” he said to Bella when they were on the way. “Are you mad at me for not telling you something I found out not that long ago?”

  “No.”

  “Are you sure?” he asked, not believing that for one minute.

  He liked what they had going even if he didn’t have much of a clue what it was other than she made him feel good about himself. She brought out protective instincts he hadn’t felt since he first met her.

  She made him want to be a better person and he’d always thought he was a decent one to begin with.

  She sighed. “Fine, I’m slightly annoyed that you waited to tell me. Part of me is nervous to hear what Hailey has to say. The other part is excited. But I’m back to being nervous about what is going on with my uncle. As much as I try to silo my emotions and feelings, they keep spilling out of cracks.”

  “Don’t lock them up or push them away,” he said, his hand going over to her thigh and rubbing up and down. “Your life is like a firehose turned on full blast with no one to hold it down.”

  “And I’m trying hard not to drench myself or those around me,” she said back softly.

  “We are both water-resistant,” he said. “Relax and let’s take this one day at a time.”

  “I will. Thanks, Eli.”

  “What exactly are you thanking me for? Making you call out my name a few times last night? Or flying with you here today? Or something else? I know the list is long.”

  She laughed and he was happy to get her to do that. “I’d like to think we thanked each other enough last night.”

  “It’d never be enough for me,” he slipped out without meaning to.

  She looked like she wanted to say something but then closed her mouth and he focused on the road and lunchtime traffic.

  By the time they were in Hailey’s office forty minutes later, he said, “You say the island is claustrophobic, but it doesn’t take thirty minutes to go two miles there.”

  “Sorry, bad timing to have you here, but it was the only opening I had. You hit the rush of people returning to work.”

  “Since you don’t seem to have a lot of time, let us know what you found out.”

  Hailey laughed at him and turned to Bella. “Good to see you again, Bella. And if you’d like me to kick my cousin out of my office so we can talk, I’d love to do it.”

  Bella smiled. “He can stay. I don’t need him coming to my door in a huff again because he didn’t know something he thought I should tell him.”

  “Eli never liked to be kept out of the loop,” Hailey said.

  “I can’t protect her if I don’t know what is going on,” he argued.

  “That’s your story and you’re sticking to it,” Hailey said. “I get it.” Hailey put a hand over the side of her mouth toward Bella. “He’s fibbing. He just has to know it all. He’s been like this his whole life. I should know. I’m older than him.”

  “By one year,” he complained. “Hailey wishes she were the oldest of this generation but she’s not.”

  “No woman wants to be older than they are,” Hailey said. “I thought you knew the ladies so well.”

  Bella blushed when Hailey said that and he frowned. At least his cousin had the grace to cringe and mouth she was sorry when Bella wasn’t looking.

  “Since we are on a time constraint. Let Bella know what you found out. Then I can fill her in about what Griffin did. Not that you need to know, but we are all here.”

  “Have a seat and get comfortable,” Hailey said, moving over to the plush leather furniture on the other side of the room. Hailey opened a folder. “Here is a copy of a report that I’m sure you’re going to want to read over. I’ve got a sorority sister in Savannah. Susanna was born and raised in that area. She knew a lot of the local talk and did some more digging discreetly. I didn’t tell her why I was inquiring and she didn’t ask.”

  He should have figured Hailey did that. It’s no different than what Griffin was doing. “What did you find out?” Bella asked. “Truth or fiction?”

  “I’d like to think it’s a mixture of both. Your father went into political law, you know that, correct?”

  “I did. I’ve done some digging myself but could only find articles that he wanted a future in politics.”

  “Yes,” Hailey said. “It seems his father, Vernon Kingston, had a different idea of politics than your father. They were fine with him being an Ambassador. They felt it was padding his resume.”

  “So they wanted him to run for office?” Bella asked.

  “That was their wish. Whether it was your father’s or not, no one knows for certain. There was talk that it wasn’t what Ben wanted, but that he always had a hard time saying no to his father.”

  “I wouldn’t know. I met my grandparents and aunt when I was younger but don’t really remember them. It was only once when they flew over on vacation. I don’t even think they were coming to see my father, but rather were there and my father found out.”

  “Your grandmother had a soft spot for your father or so it seems. Again,” Hailey said, “people talk and it’s hard to know what is true. What is true is that your father’s family comes from old money. They are very, shall we say, Southern old school.”

  “They’ve got sticks up their asses for those that aren’t in their circle?” Eli asked.

  “Something like that,” Hailey said.

  “And they would have disapproved of my mother. Is that where this is going?”

  “Yes,” Hailey said. “Money and class were neck and neck with them. Your mother came from a lot of money.”

  “Probably more than my father’s side,” Bella said.

  “Definitely, though the bulk of the wealth seems to be with what your uncle built,” Hailey said.

  “But your mother had a reputation of being a wild child,” Eli said. “That is what we’ve found.”

  “It’s not a secret,” Bella said. “I never knew her that way. I’d like to think meeting my father calmed her down. Or maybe she knew she had to because of his line of work.”

  “So that would have caused a rift between Ben and his father?” Eli asked.

  “That and that she was French,” Hailey said. “They saw it as Ben not returning to the States and fulfilling his political career.”

  “I don’t know if my father wanted to run for office. He never talked about it,” Bella said. “He loved his job and he was thrilled to be moving to Monaco too. My mother was happy to be closer to home. I was too because my mother’s family was there. It was the only family I had.”

  It just gave him more insight into how lonely Bella really was. “So the rift grew?” Eli asked.


  “Susanna’s grandmother happened to run in the same circle as your grandparents back in the day. She’s in a nursing home now and it took Susanna time to go talk with her.”

  “You went above and beyond for this,” Bella said.

  “Just doing the job you hired me for,” Hailey said. “Your grandmother—Bethany—was heartbroken that she was losing her son. She didn’t feel your mother was good enough for him, but was willing to try. Your father distanced himself after the wedding. There seemed to be rumors of a fight, but Susanna couldn’t find out anymore in regards to that.”

  Bella shook her head. “My mother was outspoken. I can only imagine what she might have said if she felt she had to defend herself or my father.”

  “I’d like her,” Hailey said.

  “I’m not like her,” Bella said. “I’m probably more like my father in that I tried to fall in line.”

  Eli reached his hand over. “You don’t know your father was like that. You’re just assuming based on rumors. And I’ve seen another side of you that might lead me to believe there is more of your mother inside of you than you want to let on.”

  Hailey cleared her throat. “Okay then. Moving on. Years passed. Your grandmother was upset she didn’t get to see you much or often. Then your grandmother received a cancer diagnosis and your father came home once.”

  “I didn’t know she was sick,” Bella said. “He never said a word.”

  “And you’ll never know the reason why,” Eli said.

  “No. What I will always remember is that none of them came to my parents’ funeral. None of them reached out to me,” Bella said.

  “I’m sorry for that,” Hailey said. “When news broke that your father died, your grandmother went into a deep depression. Your Aunt Gretchen ended up having to step up to be the matriarch of the family.”

  “So someone else to despise me,” Bella said. “This was probably a mistake on my part to know this.”

  “I don’t think your aunt despises you. I actually think she might want to reach out to you but won’t go behind her father’s back,” Hailey said.