by Penelope Sky
“I have a show tonight, but I don’t know what to do. After what happened the other night…I’m not sure I want to go back.” She stared at her dress with her back turned to me, her arms crossed over her chest. Her perfect frame was beautiful in just the black thong she wore, her curves so enticing, I was practically salivating.
I wanted to throw her onto the bed and fuck her.
But it would be insensitive to rush into things. I’d heard her whimpers and cries over the phone when Kamikaze had her pinned. I heard him threaten to rape her right in the open. I didn’t have a visual on the moment, but the mental picture was enough to haunt me. She was the one who actually lived it. “I’ll send my men with you. They’ll keep you safe.”
“No.” She eyed a black dress hanging in front of her, but she didn’t take it. “I don’t trust anyone.”
“You can’t give up your part in the opera. Don’t let some asshole make you change your life.”
“It’s a small compromise not to be raped.” She shut the closet doors and turned back to me, her perfect tits on display.
It was hard to have a serious conversation with her when she looked like that. I kept my eyes locked on to hers and resisted the temptation to stare at her hard nipples and beautiful curves. “I’ll go with you.”
She tightened her arms across her chest, blocking her tits from view. “You will?”
I nodded. “I’ll sit in the audience. And then I’ll walk you to your car.” I wasn’t much better than a group of men assigned to the job, but she obviously felt more comfortable with me than anyone else. I had other things to do, like plotting my revenge against Kamikaze, but I couldn’t let Arwen give up all her joys because of her fear.
“You’d do that?”
“You must know by now that I would do anything for you.” When I drove to Florence to rescue her from Kamikaze, I was putting my life on the line. Anytime I went head-to-head with that man, it was a dangerous game. He didn’t play by the rules like everyone else, so you never knew what trick he might pull. He didn’t exactly have a code of ethics like most people. That was probably why he’d survived so many decades.
Arwen’s father’s cancer was a bit of unexpected luck, if you asked me. He’d died on a morphine drip in the hospital, holding his daughter’s hand as he passed peacefully in his sleep. If Kamikaze had gotten his hands on him, his death would have been excruciating.
“I just know you’re busy…”
“This isn’t forever.” I opened the doors of her closet and grabbed the black dress off the hanger. “I’ll take care of him eventually, and you’ll have your freedom back. You’ll have more freedom than you’ve ever had before.”
“When are you going to kill him?” She unzipped the back of the dress and began to step into it.
“Not sure yet.” How did you kill a monster like that without losing too many men in the process? If nuclear weapons weren’t so destructive, that would be a good option. “But let me worry about that.”
She got the dress on then turned around so I could zip it up the rest of the way.
I dragged the zipper to the base of her neck, making the dress mold to her perfectly. She had the most fascinating curves, a petite woman who had a real ass and impressive tits. Everything about her was perfect. I hadn’t noticed when we first met because I was oblivious to everything around me. I’d decided to hate her before I even met her because of the situation. Maybe if I’d met her in a bar or somewhere else, I would have appreciated her beauty the way everyone else did.
She turned back around, giving me a slight smile even though her eyes were still full of hesitation.
“I confronted my father last night. He’s the one who told Kamikaze our marriage was a lie.”
Her eyes fell as her lips pressed tightly together.
“That was why Kamikaze went after you. He knows about the deal we made. He considers you to be his, the debt your father never repaid. It’s clear that one of us will have to kill each other before we find peace.”
“It’d better be you,” she whispered. “It has to be you…”
“I know.” I wished it were that easy.
She moved into me and pressed her forehead against my chest. Her arms rested on mine, and she closed her eyes, doing her best to stay calm even though it was obvious she was scared. “Let me help you. We can do this together.”
“I don’t want you anywhere near him.”
“But I can be bait. I can lure him out somewhere and—”
“No. I’ll take care of it on my own.”
She pulled away and lifted her gaze again. “You don’t have to. I know you made a promise to my father—”
“That’s not the only reason why. You saved those women because it was the right thing to do. I’m going to save you because it’s the right thing to do. I would never be able to sleep ever again if something happened to you. So, I will handle this.” I wasn’t looking forward to the confrontation. Anytime two armies met on the battlefield, almost all the men died. Bullets were wasted over money, even though both sides were rich. Or they were wasted over women. In some ways, that was worse. I dropped her embrace and pulled away. “We should get going.”
13
Arwen
Knowing Maverick was out there gave me the greatest sense of security I would ever find. He was just one man with one gun, but he made me feel so safe. I preferred his protection over a dozen men who were strangers. At least my husband actually cared about me. He wasn’t holding a gun for a paycheck. He was doing it because my life was invaluable to him.
I finished the performance then returned backstage. The cast and crew moved around like every other night, giving each other hugs and kisses in celebration. My eyes kept drifting to the mirror to see the reflection behind me, to make sure the large man with the frightening smile wasn’t staring at me like last night. The second we’d made eye contact, a warning burned in my stomach. If I had better sense, I wouldn’t have walked to my car by myself in the middle of the night.
I kept looking in the reflection but saw no sign of him. It seemed too obvious to hit me at the opera again, but maybe it was so obvious that it would cause me to drop my guard…making it the perfect opportunity.
I unclasped my earrings then pulled the dozens of pins out of my hair, knowing Maverick would be there any minute.
I’d been struggling with an internal demon for the last few days. All of this happened after I confronted Caspian at the rehab center. Our conversation had to be the trigger that set him off, that made him run to Kamikaze in the first place. That was his punishment for the stunt I pulled.
Seemed harsh to me.
I didn’t want to tell Maverick the truth because it would probably piss him off. He would be livid with me for going behind his back once again. But it seemed wrong to leave him in the dark, to not tell him this vital piece of information. If Caspian told Kamikaze that, what else did he say?
Maybe they were both plotting against us.
Maverick appeared behind me, his hands moving to my shoulders as I sat on my stool.
The second I felt his touch, all the tension left the muscles across my frame. An invisible blanket of protection surrounded me, made me feel invincible. His affection was like a drug to me. He made me feel so many degrees of happy.
I pulled the last pin out of my hair and rose to my feet to greet him. Handsome as always, he wore a well-fitted suit with a dark tie. At over six feet, he was tall, dark, and sexy. When I looked into those brown eyes, I knew I never wanted to look at anyone else again. I didn’t want to take another lover. I didn’t want to meet a man at a bar when I could go home to the man I actually wanted.
And I didn’t just want him because of the way he protected me.
His arms slid around my waist. “You were amazing…as always.”
“You’d say that even if I weren’t.”
“True.” He smiled as he leaned in and kissed me on the mouth. “But that’s a good thing…because you can neve
r go wrong.” He kissed me again before he pulled away, stopping the affection before it escalated from PG-13 to X.
“Is this your husband?” Ruby was one of my costars. We sang a duet together in the middle of the show. With pearls around her neck and a smile on her face, she looked Maverick up and down with approval.
“Yes, it is. Maverick this is my costar Ruby.”
Maverick took her hand and kissed her on the cheek. “Lovely to meet you.”
“You too. Well, I’ll let you lovebirds enjoy your night.” She walked away behind Maverick then mouthed, “Damn, he’s hooooot.” She winked then kept walking.
I stopped the smile from spreading across my face.
Maverick had a glint of humor in his eyes, like he knew something.
“What?”
“I’m hot, huh?”
“What are you talking about?” I asked, keeping a straight face.
“There are mirrors everywhere. Tell her I said thank you.”
Maverick kept his arm around my waist as he walked me to the car. It was dark, with the occasional streetlight illuminating the stairs and sidewalk.
I kept looking up and down the street, waiting to see if three large men would emerge from the shadows.
But no one ever did.
“I have men watching the entire block.” He kept his eyes forward as he guided me to the black car. He opened the passenger door. “They aren’t here.”
I got into the seat, and then we drove away. My eyes kept scanning the darkness for anything unusual until the buildings passed and it was just the open road.
Maverick drove with one hand on the wheel. “He won’t try the same thing twice.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“Because it would be stupid to repeat the same experiment twice and expect different results. You’re on your guard now. I’m armed. It would just be a waste of ammo at this point. He doesn’t want to hurt you. He wants you to be in perfect condition for his purpose. So, he’s not gonna shoot up the entire street and hope he kills me and all my men without touching you. Too much of a gamble.”
“Do you think he’d try to break in to the house?”
“No. That would require a lot of manpower. The smart thing would be to draw us out somewhere and then do it.”
“Well, that’s not going to work on me. I’m not going shopping or to the movies anytime soon.”
He sped through the darkness while keeping his eyes on the road. “If he’s smart, he’ll try to take me instead of you.”
I turned my head his way.
“Because he’ll use me to get you to surrender.”
And it would work.
“But we can’t let that happen.”
“No…we can’t.” The last thing I wanted was to be raped and tortured until someone finally killed me, but I would prefer that over something happening to Maverick. I’d rather be raped a million times than let anyone hurt him.
“If that ever does happen, don’t do it.”
“You know I would.”
“But it would be a waste. He would get you out of hiding and kill me anyway. Trust me on that. That’s how he plays.”
I pulled one knee to my chest and looked out the window, taking comfort in the darkness that surrounded us. It was difficult to hide in a luscious landscape like this. Headlights were visible from a mile away.
Maverick was quiet for the rest of the drive home.
We pulled into the garage minutes later, then headed inside. Now that I felt safe behind the walls along the perimeter and inside the stone structure of the house, I was exhausted. My body was so tense with discomfort because I’d spent all my energy being prepared for the seven-foot monster to jump out of nowhere.
I didn’t bother going to my bedroom to change first. I headed straight for his bedroom and let him unzip the back of my dress. Once it came loose, I let it fall to the ground and then got into bed.
Maverick took his time pulling out his belongings from his pockets. His wallet sat on the dresser along with his watch. His phone came next. In clothes like that, he looked like one in a million. With beautiful golden skin and soft eyes made of caramel, he was as beautiful as he was delicious.
He stripped off his jacket and tossed it on the armchair then pulled his tie loose. Slowly, he unfastened each of the buttons on his collared shirt until he peeled it off and revealed a tight eight-pack with perfectly tanned skin. His body was so strong, practically bulletproof.
He loosened his belt and pushed his slacks down as he kicked off his shoes. Items of clothing fell to the floor until he stood in just his boxers, his thighs muscular and tight. Dark hair covered his calves and thighs, but it stopped at his waist. His torso was a smooth surface of muscle and skin.
His ass was the best part. It was tight and built like a brick house.
I could stare at his perfection all night long, watch it like it was a dirty movie.
But instead of it being fake, it was real…because he was the man I married.
He grabbed his phone and checked a few things before he made his way to the bed, his eyes still on his phone. He stopped at his nightstand, like he was prepared to put it down once he was finished reading whatever was on his screen.
I rose onto my knees then yanked down the front of his boxers, revealing a soft cock that was still impressive in its size.
He lowered his phone and looked down at me, his cock thickening instantaneously.
I put it between my lips and started to suck, feel it fill my mouth like an inflating balloon.
A quiet moan escaped his lips, and he tossed his phone onto the nightstand like he didn’t give a damn.
On all fours with my ass in the air, I did my best, but his dick quickly became too big for my mouth so I only stuffed half of it inside. My tongue flattened, and I pushed it as deep as I could without causing my throat to gag. It was the first time I’d put his dick in my mouth, and I wasn’t sure what had taken so long. I’d never been a fan of giving head, but I didn’t mind doing this in the least. This was a cock that should be kissed, should be licked, should be eaten. It deserved it at all.
His hand moved into my hair, and he kept it out of my face as he watched me, transfixed by the way I sucked his big dick into my little mouth.
He got a little bigger and a little thicker, and tears sprang to my eyes because of the pressure on my throat. I struggled to breathe and keep my jaw unhinged like this, to arch my neck perfectly to suck his dick just right. The tears streaked down my face, just as they did when he made me come.
His hand cupped my cheek, and he brushed his thumb over my tear, smearing it across his finger as he watched me suck him off. He brought it to his mouth and tasted it, like he wanted to know how salty my tears were. “Look at me.”
My eyes lifted to meet his as I kept sucking his dick. I stared at the beautiful man as he stood over me, as he watched me enjoy him so expressively. I wished I could take more of him, but this was all my anatomy could handle. He seemed to enjoy it all the same.
“You know how to suck dick.”
Only when I felt like it.
He grabbed my neck and slowly pulled his dick out of my mouth. Once it left my tongue, it bounced down and hung between his legs, the veins thick and visible and the blood making his skin turn slightly red.
He pulled open his nightstand and grabbed a condom.
His black wedding ring sat there too, something he hadn’t touched since our wedding day.
Then he shut the drawer again.
I was tired of using condoms. I was tired of feeling the latex separate us when we were monogamous. I wanted to feel this man come inside me, feel him fill me the way a husband should fill his wife.
But he rolled on the condom without thinking twice about it.
He got on top of me, widened my legs with his thighs, and then sank into me with an appreciative moan.
Once he was inside me, I stopped thinking about the layer between us. I just thought about him and those beau
tiful espresso eyes as they looked into mine. My hands were in his hair, and my lips were on his. Together, we moved our bodies, feeling each other and enjoying each other like there was nothing else in the world we would rather be doing. I breathed hard against his mouth as he picked up his pace, slamming into me good and hard. Soon, we were both covered in sweat, both lost in the clouds of desire.
“You feel so fucking good…” I grabbed his ass and pulled him deep inside me, thinking about Ruby’s comment at the theater. She thought he was hot, just like everyone else. But I was his wife—the only woman in his bed. He was mine and no one else’s.
He moaned as he pounded into me harder, his powerful legs keeping my knees apart. He panted with the exertion, his temples flushing red because he was consumed by the sex.
I’d never had sex this good with anyone else. It was either attributed to Maverick’s bedroom skills…or he was the man I was most attracted to. It took two to tango, and we danced together so well, especially when he took the lead.
“I’m gonna come…” I gripped the back of his neck and felt my body tighten around him. His dick felt so much bigger when my pussy constricted in the explosion. It made clenching around his dick so much better, gripping it like I didn’t want to let go.
“Yes, Sheep.” He held his face above mine and watched me, sweat dripping from his forehead onto my skin. “Come for me.”
After the way Kamikaze had assaulted me, I thought sex would be the last thing on my mind. But rape and sex were two different things, so they weren’t related in my head. Making love to my husband was good and pure, borderline beautiful. It was so different that it couldn’t be compared, being blanketed by affection from this man as he took me deep into the night. My nails dug into his ass as I finished, as I gushed around his cock with a climax that made my toes curl.
Once I was finished, he slowed down. He always brought things to a slower pace when he was about to explode. He wanted to make it last as long as possible, to enjoy the moment when he filled the tip of the condom with his ecstasy. With his gaze focused on mine, he gave his final pumps, his brown eyes filled with deep longing.