by Zara Cox
Zach stood in the doorway, his eyes riveted on her.
Chapter Seventeen
“There you are,” he said. His voice was deep, assured. And his body was as mesmerizing as the sunset had been several minutes ago.
She found herself swaying forward.
He caught her in his arms and took her mouth in a deep kiss that went on for an eternity.
She was weak-kneed by the time he raised his head and looked down at her with dark, hungry grey eyes.
“Are you done with work?” she asked, her voice a breathless gush that made her cringe inwardly.
His fingers caressed her cheek and his other hand curled around her waist, pulling her into his hard body. “For now. Dealing with four CEOs with different agendas has its challenges. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.”
“You love it, though, don’t you? The cut and thrust of it all?” she asked.
His sexy grin held more than a tinge of weariness. “Don’t use words like thrust when we’re this close, baby. It kinda fries my brain.”
Her blush made him laugh. “Yes, I guess I love it. I wouldn’t do it if it didn’t interest me.” His fingers trailed along her jaw to curve over her nape.
He kissed her again. The scent of the rose grew stronger and she realized they’d crushed it between their bodies. It fell uselessly to the ground when he pulled back. “I missed you, Peaches.”
“I missed you too.” She trembled from head to toe with the power he had over her. But the feeling strengthened her resolve to dig deeper into the man who now held her heart.
Catching his nape the same way he’d captured hers, she drew her tongue along his mouth. He groaned but then stepped back. “I’d love nothing more than to take you to bed right now and fuck you until neither of us can move. But, we do have time to finish what we started in my study this morning before we— What the fuck are you wearing?” He demanded as his fingers encountered her unique underwear.
“Exactly what you think I’m wearing. You asked me to pick something, didn't you?”
He jerked her robe open and stared in disbelief. “And you decided to pick a fucking chastity belt? Are you out of your mind?”
“On the contrary, I’ve never been more sane. Besides, why did you have it in your collection if you detest it so much?”
“Because I never thought it would be used against me!”
“Ah.”
“‘Ah’?” He shook his head and stared down at the locked device as if it was his mortal enemy. “Help me out here, Peaches. I’m clearly missing something. What the hell does ‘ah,’ mean?”
She licked dry lips, suddenly not sure if she’d thought this through enough.
“I’m waiting,” he growled.
“I just thought we could, you know, play a game.”
“A game?” He spat the word out like it was poison. “I’ll play any kind of game you want, beautiful, as soon as you take that goddamn thing off.” He tugged at the belt then ran his fingers along the seam looking for a way in.
“That’s not how this works, Zach.”
“Jesus, Bethany. This isn’t going to end well, you know that, don’t you?”
“If you stop thinking about what’s in your way for a second, perhaps you’ll find it isn’t all bad.”
He straightened and slowly folded his arms.
Her mouth dried as the force of his implacable will hit her. “Very well. Tell me the rules of this game. The quicker we start, the quicker we’ll finish. And I can start punishing you for what you’re doing to me now.”
“Zachary—
“No, baby. You don’t get to back out now or call me Zachary in that sexy voice to try and get your way. I’ll do what you want. Then you’ll have to do what I want.”
She licked her lips. “I’ve hidden the key to the belt somewhere in this room. If you find it within five minutes, you can take it off. If you don’t, I get to ask you any question I want and you give me a straight answer.”
He stiffened and his eyes narrowed. “This wasn’t what we agreed this morning.”
She shrugged and his gaze dropped to her breasts. His jaw clenched hard.
“I know. I just thought I’d help you a little.”
“Trust me, Peaches. This isn’t helping. In any way.” He eyed the belt again, and his mouth firmed. “But I’ll play along.”
Surprise shot through her. “You will?”
“Don’t salivate just yet, baby. I aim to win.” He tugged off his Tag Heuer watch, handed it to her and stepped back. “Tell me when.”
Unable to believe that she’d got him to play along, she stared down at the face of the watch blindly for a few seconds before her brain kicked into gear. When the hand struck twelve, she said, “Go.”
He strolled through the room like he had all the time in the world. He peered underneath dildos and anal plugs, checked beneath the rocking cock chair and between the straps of the swing.
She held her breath as four minutes passed. He trailed his fingers over the top of the cabinet as the last minute ticked away.
Turning slowly, his gaze travelled over her. He sauntered over to her and just stood in front of her.
“Peaches?”
Her heart jumped into her throat as he reached for her. “No…Zach…”
“Ah,” he echoed her earlier response.
Firm hands pulled her into his rock-hard body. Fingers speared in her hair in a languorous search as he bent his head and kissed her. Her robe fell from her body and he traced hot hands down her body to the belt.
His fingers slid underneath the back strap of the chastity belt and she moaned in defeat. He plucked the key from where she’d hidden it between her butt cheeks and stepped back.
“Time?” he asked with a smug grin.
She glanced dazedly at his watch. “Six seconds till time.”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he stepped to her side where the small lock held the belt in place. Sliding it in, he turned the key with a vicious twist. The action caused the underside of the belt to graze against her core. She moaned at the friction and his eyes narrowed.
“I won. You’re not supposed to enjoy this.”
“I’m…not.”
“Liar.”
Flinging the belt away, he picked her up and carried her to the gurney. She barely caught her breath before he was parting her thighs.
His tongue on her clit ripped a cry from her throat. Relentlessly, he took her to the edge, then left her there until the impending orgasm had receded.
After a third time, he straightened.
“That’s all you’re getting for now.”
“Zach!”
He silently debated for a moment before he pushed a shaky hand through his hair. “No. You brought this on yourself, baby. You get to suffer as much as I do. Anyway, we have to go or we’ll be late for our reservation.”
“What reservation?” she husked out.
He walked to corner of the room and picked up the belt. “The one I arranged as a treat for you, and no…it’s not another camel ride, although I assure you, you haven’t lived until you ride a camel in the black desert night.”
“I think I’ll pass that particular treat until my next lifetime. I’ve heard that scorpions the side of buses come out at night in these parts.”
“You have nothing to fear, Bethany. I’ll protect you.”
She trembled again. He saw it and his mouth curved slightly with male satisfaction.
Ten minutes later, adorned in the indigo lace dress and trembling with unspent energy, she asked, “So what did you plan?”
“We’re going to a show. Of sorts.” As they went down the stairs, she noticed he still had the belt. “Gimme a sec. I need to do something.”
She followed him to the kitchen where the open fire used for baking traditional bread roared away. He strode to the fire and threw the belt in.
Shocked laughter bubbled from her chest. “I can’t believe you just did that.”
“Believe it.
Now, let’s go and enjoy our show.”
***
Two hours later, Bethany was rudely introduced to another bout of gut-ripping jealousy. She sat in her cushioned banquet seat at the exclusive restaurant Zachary had brought her to in Gueliz, and tried to keep her emotions under control.
An impossible task when the approaching rhythmic jiggles signaled the return of the exotic creature who’d been the source of Bethany’s simmering anger for last hour.
Of the trio of the belly dancers who weaved between the tables, she was the most stunning, with eyes that promised celestial delights and hips that rolled with impossible sensuality.
That she’d made a beeline for Zach the moment she’d seen him had set Bethany’s teeth on edge. That he’d made no effort to ignore her every hypnotic move had made Bethany want to slap his face. Hard.
“You’re not eating,” he observed as the dancer drew closer.
“I’m surprised you noticed.”
A frown touched his forehead. “What are you talking about?”
The belly dancer was once again in front of him, swaying and rolling like a cobra to a charmer’s tune. “Nothing. Enjoy your show.”
His eyebrows rose. “My show?”
The jingling grew almost deafening. Zach turned just as the dancer bent forward and offered him her two bountiful, barely restrained breasts.
Bethany jumped up. “I’m not hungry, Zach. Can we leave, please?”
She didn’t wait for his answer. Heels sinking into the plush, carpeted floors, she exited the restaurant and struck off toward the well-lit square.
Zach caught up with her barely a minute later. He didn’t speak or try to get her to slow her rapid strides.
She walked into the busy square and came to an abrupt halt. “Sugar. I want sugar.”
She looked left and right and headed for the stall that offered what she needed. She eyed the assorted confections and picked one dripping in honey.
Zach’s jaw tightened as she reached for her clutch, and he handed over a note before she could. His instruction to the vendor to keep the change brought a deluge of thanks that followed them down the street until they were out of the square.
Bethany munched on the sticky honey sweet, aware of Zach’s furtive glances at her as they strolled through another, quieter souk.
“Talk to me, Bethany. I don’t want this distance between us.”
“Oh, so you can feel the distance?”
He snorted. “Are you serious? It’s a fucking mile wide.”
She threw the last bite in a nearby bin and glared at him. “Well, watching that belly dancer eye-fuck you all night has a way of cooling my ardor.”
His eyes widened and a grin spread slowly across his face. “That’s the problem? You’re jealous?”
“No need to sound so disgustingly pleased about it.” She whirled away, but he caught her hand and roughly kissed her knuckle.
“Oh, but I am. I’m very, very pleased,” his voice was just as rough. Grabbing her ass, he squeezed hard. “I don’t even remember what she looks like, Peaches.”
“That doesn’t make it any better.”
“I know what will.” He set off down a quiet alley, dragging her behind him.
“Where are we going? Zach, slow down.”
“No.”
Chapter Eighteen
The alley grew darker, the wall on both sides soaring four floors high. Normally, she’d have been reticent of being in such a dark place but being with Zach, even when he made her blindingly mad, made her feel safe.
Although safe was the last thing on her mind now as strong, impatient hands lifted her off her feet and slammed her against the wall.
“Zach!”
“Do you know if we’re discovered, we’ll be thrown in jail for years? Even if you were my wife, we’d still be arrested.”
She jerked and tried to push him off. “Zach…no.” The thought of Zach being married to anyone, to her, made her senses reel. Things she’d avoided thinking about suddenly tumbled through her head, making her hope, making her dream things she had no business dreaming of. She’d known him six days, for God’s sake.
“But the danger makes the anticipation even more sharp, doesn’t it?”
She focused as need slammed into her. His fingers were edging up her dress, blazing a trail of fire up her inner thigh.
“We can’t…”
“No, we can’t. It’s forbidden.” But he didn’t stop. His fingers grazed her panties, found her damp and needy. And he swore. “What did I say to you about panties, Peaches?”
“That…I shouldn’t wear any?”
“So what’s this?”
“You can’t have your way all the time. Especially not when you annoy me.”
“How annoyed can you be with me when you’re already wet for me?”
“My body may be stupid crazy about you, but that doesn’t mean you have cart blanche over me.”
His heated gaze dropped to her mouth. “I saw you dance today. In my ballroom.”
Shock zapped through her, made her freeze long enough for him to kick her legs wider. “You did?”
“Yes,” he hissed. “You were exquisite, Peaches. Breathtaking. I’ve never seen anything more beautiful in my life.”
“Oh, Zach. How can I be angry with you and yet melt at your words?” She groaned when he flicked his thumb against her clit.
“You don’t have a reason to be angry with me. Or be jealous that I’m looking at another woman. Watching her dance reminded me of this afternoon, how I felt when I watched you dance.”
With one quick jerk he ripped her panties off. He quickly stuffed them in his back pocket then lowered his zipper.
All around them, the sounds of people moving around crept into the alley. Music blared from speakers in the night market two short streets away.
“How…how did you feel?”
“Like I was watching the purest beauty. That I could die in that moment and be glad to stop breathing.”
“God!”
They could be found out any second. But Zach’s words, combined with the fiery need clawing through her insides couldn’t be quenched. Nor could she stop Zach’s forceful yank on her neckline as he exposed her breasts to this hungry mouth.
With one hand at her throat pinning her to the wall and the other firmly in possession of her sex, he dropped his head and pulled her nipple into his mouth.
She bit her lip to stop from crying out.
Danger swirled in the sultry night air. It skated over skin, intensifying the sensation as Zach pulled harder on her nipple then laved it with his tongue.
Two fingers slipped inside her wetness, readying her for the thick cock that pressed insistently against her thigh.
She grasped his shoulders as she felt herself slipping down the rough, cooling wall.
“Zachary,” she moaned weakly, desire glazing her senses and her voice.
“I don’t care if they throw me in jail, Bethany. I have to fuck you, right here. Right now,” he whispered brokenly. “Lift up your dress for me, baby.”
She complied without question. Because, God, she wanted this, too. Wanted to feel his thick cock inside her more than she wanted to breath. She needed to feel that he belonged to her on at least some level. More than she wanted the freedom that could be taken away should they be discovered.
Reaching inside his trousers, she freed his cock, heard his groan as she caressed his rigid erection. “Fuck me, Zach. Put your beautiful cock inside me and make me come.”
“Shit, Bethany. You’re like a drug in my veins. No matter how much I get, I only want more of you.”
The way he said that made a dart of pain hook into her chest. The pleasure in the confession was strained. In fact, she detected the barest hint of anger.
Pain morphed into pleasure as he parted her thighs and surged into her with one hard lunge.
Her muffled whimper only excited him. He slammed back into her and she heard his muted shout of pleasure
as he touched her in that place that only he seemed to find.
“You drive me to this, Bethany. I ache for you. All the damn time.” Again she heard the banked anger in his voice as he fucked her in that forbidden alley.
He increased his tempo, his hand clamped tightly over her mouth as her cries grew frequent and louder. She couldn’t help it.
It was what he did to her. Much too soon, she felt the orgasmic momentum build. She grew wetter, slicker, even as her body tightened with the build up of sensation.
“Are you close, Peaches?”
She nodded frantically, her hands gripping his broad shoulders as he pumped harder inside her. Merciless teeth bit into the side of her neck, then his tongue soothed the pain, only to repeat again and again. With one hand, he hooked one knee around his hip, opening her up even more for his penetration.
Then with a grunt, he slammed into her.
“Now, baby. Come for me now!”
She did. Of course she did. Because this man was so in tune with her body, so in control of her emotions, that he could command an orgasm from her with little more than a few thrusts and potent, sexy words.
As bliss cascaded through her in convulsing waves, he snatched his hand away from her mouth and replaced it with his lips. He swallowed her screams of pleasure, devouring them until they became soft, helpless moans.
She was still shuddering through the last of her climax when he sank his teeth into her shoulder with a muffled, “Fuck!”
Helplessly, he pumped his seed into her, hot and hard, filling her up until she felt his semen drip down her inner thighs.
“Zach,” she murmured, overcome by the emotions storming through her. She touched the side of his face, expecting him to turn and kiss her palm as he usually did. Instead, he remained still for several seconds then he pulled out of her.
He stepped back, and adjusted his pants. Plucking her panties from his back pocket, he used them to clean her up.
Then in silence, he slid his fingers through hers and led her out of the dark alley.
Chapter Nineteen
He didn’t say another word as he helped her into the car, but he kept his arm around her shoulders, and her head tucked beneath his chin as they were driven back home.