by Nana Malone
“Well yes, I even admired it. The diamond was the size of her entire wrist. It was stunning. And she made it a point to talk about it with everyone who would listen. I wonder how you found all the other jewelry and not that one.”
She quickly flipped her hair over her shoulder. “A better question, Miss Ashong, is why a jewel like that was never reported missing.”
17
Liv
I couldn’t believe we were still doing my birthday amidst all of this madness. But Ben was stubborn. He was muleheaded. Obstinate. A pain in the ass.
All of the above words mean stubborn AF.
Whatever. He and Telly were in cahoots. Some best friend she was. They said I needed a party. He said, I deserved a party. I didn’t want a damn party. I had work and a deadline and a missing woman to find. A mother to make proud. There was no time for a fucking party.
I just wanted all of this over as soon as possible so I could get back to work.
As I marched down the stairs in my emerald green jumpsuit with a V down to my navel, I tried not to freak out at the number of people that were going to be in the house. Ben had invited everybody. Literally everybody. Everyone that I’d worked with at work, the few girlfriends I’d had over the years that I was still in touch with, which I knew was thanks to Telly. Business associates. And the new family, Jessa, Roone, Lucas, Bryna, Penny, Sebastian, Ariel, Tristan, they were all there. The Chase brothers too, along with their wives.
And truth be told, my jaw did drop open a little every time I took a good look at Xander. Those silvery gray eyes, dark hair, a mouth that said he was born to do mischief. But as handsome as he was, he didn’t hold a candle to my Viking. At least not in my eyes. But I was more in awe about his gift. Well, his and his wife’s. And honestly, Alexi’s wife too. Xander and Abby, Alexi’s wife, were insanely gifted photographers. I loved their work. They’d done a couple of exhibits together. Abby had once been Xander’s student, and now she was married to his brother. Which probably got awkward at some point, but God, the talent in their family.
And then there was Xander’s wife, Imani. She had chocolate brown skin and a smile that could light up the whole universe. Xander had been on and on about her show on Broadway, and he’d been flying back and forth every week to see it.
Jesus Christ, every week?
She kept shooing him away because he couldn’t keep his hands off her. She just laughed and gave me a hug. “It’s truly nice to meet you. And happy birthday.”
“Thank you. Ah, as you can see, Ben has zero chill. He’s filled this house with so many people.” I glanced around. “So many.”
She took my hand and squeezed it gently. “Just take a breath. It’s your birthday, and A, you can cry if you want to. B, if you need to escape, head on out. Or if rumors are believed, down to the pool or anywhere else. The house is massive so there are bound to be plenty of quiet hiding places.”
“That’s a good point. But I feel like I need to be a good hostess.”
She squeezed my hand again. “It is your birthday, and all you need to do is exactly what you want to do.”
“Preach.” Telly came up behind us. “Please tell her. I’ve been telling her that since this is her party, there’s no reason to be anxious, because she can leave whenever she wants. And the guests will have to understand. If they don’t understand, Ben will have a word with them.”
I rolled my eyes. “I guess you’ve met Telly.”
Imani nodded. “Your friend is quite a handful.”
Telly grinned at her. “Yes, yes I am. But who would have me any other way?”
From the corner of my eye, I saw another brunette of interest, and I grinned at Telly. “You invited her?”
Telly lifted a shoulder. “Let’s not make a big deal out of this, okay? I called like you said, and I asked her to come. It’s nothing.”
Imani leaned forward. “Oh, gossip. What’s going on?”
I filled Imani in. “Basically, that’s Telly’s girl, Carmen. She broke up with her to protect her or whatever. But now, she’s regretting that decision.”
Telly groaned then tossed back the remainder of her drink before handing me her empty glass. “Wish me luck.”
“You’re going to need to grovel.”
“I’ll wear knee pads,” she tossed back over her shoulder.
I excused myself to put the glasses back. I made the rounds, and every now and again, I’d catch Ben’s fingers hovering over my lower back. At one point in the kitchen, he cornered me behind the counter. “Love.”
“Yes, Bennett?”
“Are you aware that your dress dips so low in the back that I can almost see the crack of your ass?”
“Oh my God,” I clutched my hand to my chest. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. And from what I can tell, you don’t have any knickers on.”
“I didn’t want panty lines.”
His gaze turned hot, and then his fingers slipped inside the back V of the jumpsuit. “You naughty thing.”
I tried to wiggle away as I giggled. “What are you doing? We have a houseful of guests.”
“Well, to be fair, if I’d known you were going to wear that, I would not have invited all these people. I would have torn it off of you with my teeth.”
I rolled my eyes. “With your teeth huh? You think you’re capable?” He palmed my ass, making me laugh. “Hands to yourself. I need to at least say hello to everyone.”
He leaned close, his voice low. “They’ll wait.”
Then he frowned and looked down the front of the jumpsuit and then again down the back. “Um, how in the world is this thing staying up?”
I grinned. “Tape.”
He mouthed the word ‘tape’ as his gaze landed on my boobs. “Right, tape. All right then.”
“Bennett, focus. Who is the man in the suit over by the door? I don’t think I’ve ever—“
I froze. I’d meant to ask a question, a perfectly reasonable question, but I couldn’t because I couldn’t think. You know why? My boyfriend had put his hand inside my jumpsuit, down past the elastic that was barely holding the thing up. And he was sliding a very capable finger down over the curve of my ass and into my pussy.
“You were saying, love?”
I bit back a curse. “Bennett James Covington, if you do not remove your finger—“
He leaned closer. “Shhh… I’m just trying to make you feel good. You seem tense.”
“That’s because I am tense. There are so many people in the house. I should be mingling, and talking, and making them feel welcome.”
“Relax. I asked Jessa to handle the schmoozing aspect. She’s very good. You don’t have to be anything you don’t feel like being.”
He’d done everything to make sure I had nothing to worry about. But I still couldn’t let the anxiety go. “But I have to.”
He shook his head, retreated his finger, then slid back in, a little deeper this time. He nipped my ear. “No, you need to be exactly who you want to be. I just brought people here who wanted very much to celebrate your birthday. I wanted to make it special for you, not stressful. You don’t have to play the part of hostess. All you have to do is enjoy yourself. Talk to who you want to talk to. See who you want to see. If you’re done, really done, I will take you upstairs and lock you in our bedroom and we will shag till the sun comes up. I don’t give a fuck who notices we’re missing from the party. Do you understand me?”
Heat washed over me, as he delved his finger inside again. “Why are you like this?”
“Like what?”
“Well, naughty, for starters.”
He grinned. “Well, I think this is my personality, to be frank.”
“Yes, and you’re also sweet, and kind. And you understand how I’m feeling.”
“Well, yeah. Remember when I met you? You were hiding in a closet, literally trying to escape from a party. But I’ve seen you sometimes at parties. You can have fun. So I realized that maybe taking away your ch
oice about having feelings one way or another was the problem. If I got it wrong, tell me, and I will never throw you another party again.”
“No, you have it right.” God, he made it so hard to think. He pulled his finger free, sliding through my folds, and then slid two fingers inside. “Oh my God...”
“Hmm? You were saying?”
“I was saying that you are naughty.”
“Yes, you just told me. What else?”
“I’m saying that I’m glad you understand, and sometimes it doesn’t matter at all. Sometimes it’s okay. But when I’m tense, it’s worse in a way.”
“Great, then the moment you feel too tense to deal with it, we’ll go upstairs. But when you feel okay, we’ll come down. It’s up to you.”
“You are something else, Bennett.”
“I’ve mentioned to you how much I love the way you say my name, right?”
“Yes, once or twice.”
He slid his fingers out slowly, making sure I felt his retreat, and then he brought his fingers slightly higher to the pucker of my ass. “Bennett.”
“Olivia.” He nipped my ear and then pressed a finger to my ass. “That’s it. Let me in.”
I clutched on to the end of the counter. “Oh my God.”
“Shhh. We don’t want anyone else to know what we’re doing. Widen your legs a little.”
I did as he told me, and he continued to whisper in my ear, dirty things he wanted to do to me, dirty things he dreamed about doing, dirty things he was going to do. He had a whole dirty thing going on, all the while he was fingering my ass in the middle of a party.
A couple of people wandered into the kitchen to grab water, but the way we were angled, they couldn’t see anything because we were in the corner. So they came in, we chatted for a moment, they wished me happy birthday and made themselves scarce. All the while, Ben whispered in my ear, nipping my shoulder and my earlobe with his mouth. God, he was so… “Oh my God! Ben.”
“Yes, love?”
He shifted his fingers, and one penetrated me slowly in my ass as the other slid down into my pussy. With both his fingers in me, my knuckles tightened on the countertop. “Oh my God, Bennett, I can’t.”
“That’s it. These are mine, right?”
“Oh my God!”
“Say the words.”
“Yes, damn it, they’re yours.”
“I’m not sure which one I like the most. They’re both so tight and hot. And you like my cock in both don’t you?” His voice was a growl at the shell of my ear.
He slowly slid his finger in and out of my ass, the tight burning friction making my legs quake. I bit back the pleading moan that threatened to escape.
“I can’t hear you kitten.”
“Y-yes,” I whispered as I grabbed the edge of the counter.
He bit my lobe.
My eyes went wide, and I inhaled a sharp breath. “Oh my God. I can’t—”
His voice was like whiskey and firelight. “I am curious.”
“Bennett, I don’t know if I can—“
“Do you prefer me making love to our ass? I have a very big dick.”
I couldn’t help but cough out a laugh. He ordered me quiet with a nip to my ear. “Go on, say it.”
How could I want to laugh when he was setting my body on fire? “I am not saying that you have a big—“
His chuckle held a sinful edge. “If you don’t say it, I’m not going to let you come.”
My eyes flashed at his. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“We don’t have enough room here. Before the night is over, I want to play with your ass more. Maybe fuck it again. I want you to know who it belongs to.”
He retreated his finger again and I pulsed. He was going to kill me. I gasped. “You, it belongs to you.”
“Mmm. That’s what I like to hear. You’re such a good girl. I have all kinds of things planned for your birthday celebration.”
I squirmed. He couldn’t just leave me this worked up. “Bennett, I swear to God…”
With just one finger in my ass, the other teasing the skin around it, he nipped my ear. “I want to make you claw the sheets. When my cock is deep inside you, I’m going to slide my finger in your ass, and you’re going to scream my name, do you hear me? And then,” he whispered, “I’m going to have you bite the sheets as I have your ass again.”
The heat started at my toes, worked its way up my legs, up my thighs. It hit my clitoris quick, and I began panting. He was going to make me come just like this, with a finger in my ass, his lips on my ear, and—
I was unprepared for the wave of pleasure, and my knees nearly buckled. Just the gentle stroking, in and out, in and out, at a party full of people on my birthday. And still, he had to show how easy it was, how much I’d break for him. He just wrapped an arm around me, putting his back to the party, covering us both. With his finger in my ass, he stroked me as I came down from my high. “That’s a good girl. You can say it now. No one will hear.”
“You are terrible.”
“I just want to hear it for once.”
“Ben Covington, you have a very big dick.”
He grinned. “Now, was that so hard?” He gave me a sharp spank on my ass and another aftershock rocked through me. My knees buckled, but he held me up. “There we are. That’s a good girl. Happy birthday, my love.”
“You are in so much trouble just as soon as I can move.”
“I cannot wait until you pay me back.”
18
Ben
I couldn’t keep my eyes off of her.
My Livy.
After our antics in the kitchen, she’d gone to change. Apparently, since she wasn’t wearing knickers with her jumpsuit, she needed something else to wear.
When she reappeared, she wore something still low cut but with zero access at the back. Did she really think that would stop me?
You need to get a grip.
She really was an obsession. I could feel it. Everywhere she went in the room, my eyes tracked her, making sure she was okay, having fun, and making sure no one was touching her.
See, you were really sweet up until that point.
My mates crept up behind me and clapped me on the back. “Looks like Livy is having fun, Bridge said.
East slid me a sly grin as he asked, “Why did she change?”
I didn’t miss a beat. “Why did you notice her changing?”
He held up his hands. “All right, mate. Just a simple question…” His voice trailed as his gaze narrowed on mine. “Wait, did you—“
I flashed a grin. “It’s best not to ask such things.”
“What? How? You’ve been down here this whole time.”
“You know, I wouldn’t try and guess. Besides, a gentleman never tells.”
East pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced around. “You know what? I don’t even want to know.”
I grinned again. “No, you probably don’t.”
Bridge just chuckled under his breath. When Drew met my gaze from across the room, he sauntered over, hands in his trousers. “Were you having a team meeting without me?”
I could feel the tension creep into Bridge’s shoulders. He still hadn’t quite forgiven Drew for backing out of the larger scale plan. “Meetings are for team members.”
Drew ignored the jibe. “You look well, mates.”
“Yeah, you know, we’re just working.”
Drew frowned. “You still ticked at me, Bridge.”
I could see where this was going. And while I was generally one for hashing it out, it was not the place or the time. It was Livy’s birthday. So I stepped between them. “Hey, both of you, relax, yeah? There’s plenty of time for us to fight other people, just not each other.”
Bridge shrugged. “I wasn’t going to lay a hand on him. And frankly, man, I’m insulted that you think I would.”
I rolled my eyes. “Mate, try telling it to someone who doesn’t know you.”
“I haven’t had a dust up in years.
Haven’t you heard? I’m a refined gentleman now. I follow rules and everything.”
Drew rolled his shoulders before muttering an apology. “Look, I’m sorry. We’re all just tense, yeah?”
“Well, everyone needs to get their heads in the game. Downs knows that Drew is our pick, so the ball is in motion. Everyone had better be on the same damn page.”
East shifted on his feet. He hated tense moments like this as much as I did. But he was used to diffusing Bridge’s anger. So he automatically sided with him. “Bridge, mate, why don’t we get out and cool off?”
“I’m enjoying my drink,” Bridge muttered sullenly.
East tried to drag him away. But if Bridge didn’t want to move then he wasn’t going to move. He and East were about the same height, but Bridge had more muscle on him.
Drew pushed away from the counter, as if to go after them, but then Bridge got in Drew’s face. “You mess with my peace, and we might have a fucking problem.”
I clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Liv’s birthday. Take your beef elsewhere.”
Drew held up his hands. “No beef. Are we good, Bridge?” He stuck out his hand. Bridge hesitated but took it as I knew he would, because we were a family and we had to remember that.
East elbowed me in the side. “Isn’t that Livy’s ex?”
My gaze did a quick scan in the crowd and then narrowed at what East was looking at.
“I am going to kill the fucker. What the fuck is he doing here?” When I’d given security protocols to the team, they were to keep out Todd Spivey and Fenton Mills if either of them tried to get in, but I hadn’t even considered the possibility that Dex would be ballsy enough to turn up.
Drew stepped directly front and center of me. I tried to sidestep him, but he didn’t back down. He should have, but he did not back the fuck down.
“You think about it. If you go over there and kick his ass, it’s going to be a problem, right? Livy doesn’t want problems on her birthday.”
“If he goes near her, I will end him.”