Grind

by Joanna Blake

  JC was pacing back and forth when I got to the dressing room.

  “What the fuck, man?”

  Chaz was on stage, working the crowd. I had kind of left them in the lurch. But it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except Caro and keeping her safe.

  “Caro, sit down. I’ll be right there.”

  I pulled JC aside. He owned the club and ran it with Chaz. He was a good guy. I gave him a level look.

  “I need the week off.”

  “Fuck man! You are our headliner!”

  “I can’t explain. I’m sorry JC.”

  He gave me a level look.

  “Everything alright?”

  “No.”

  I looked over at Caro, sitting there. She looked so small and delicate.

  “But it will be.”

  “Okay man, let me know if you need anything.”

  “Thanks JC.”

  We shook hands and said goodbye.

  I had a crazy feeling that I wouldn’t be back here again.

  The crowd was dispersing by the time I led her outside to my ride. I handed her the spare helmet. She stared at it, then at me, then at the bike.

  “Get on.”

  “On… this?”

  I smiled and nodded, realization dawning.

  “First time?”

  Her sweet little mouth opened.

  “Yes.”

  “Don’t worry, it’s perfectly safe.”

  She looked skeptical. Annoyed even. Disapproving, definitely. But not scared. That was an improvement.

  “Here, let me help you.”

  I lifted the helmet over head, tucking her hair back inside it. Then I buckled it under her chin. She stared at me the whole time.

  I slide my jacket over her arms and zipped up the front.

  There was something… very intimate about dressing her like this.

  Even thought I’d much rather be undressing her.

  Just like that: instaboner.

  Focus, Chan!

  I climbed on, eager to hide my arousal. I didn’t want to freak her out after what she’d just gone through. And I definitely did not want her to think all I wanted was sex. Even though I did want sex. It just wasn’t all I wanted.

  I wanted everything.

  She got on behind me and I tugged her forward, placing her arms around my waist. Her breasts brushed my back. Her cheek rested on my shoulder. I could feel her. Smell her. I just couldn’t touch her.

  My hard on got even harder.

  Holy hell she felt good.

  “Hold on tight Princess.’

  I started the engine and took off. I smiled to myself as her arms clenched around me. Now she was even closer, her thighs pressing against mine. If only I could turn around, this would be perfect.

  I would drive backwards off a cliff for a chance to have those gorgeous legs of hers wrapped around me.

  In no time we were at her apartment complex. Too soon. I still had no idea what to do about anything when I pulled her off the back of my bike.

  She glanced me and froze.

  “You okay?”

  Her eyes were wide with fear as she stared over my shoulder.

  “Chan? There’s someone standing there.”

  I turned my head slowly to look.

  She was right.

  There was a man standing in front of her building. But not in the light. He was hidden in the shadows. There was another man on the corner, looking anything but casual. We had yet to attract their attention but it was just a matter of time.

  There was no doubt in my mind that they were waiting for her.

  “Slowly, get back on the bike. I’m taking you to my place.”

  “No- that’s not a good idea. What if he’s following me?”

  I swore under my breath. That was the last thing we needed. If they figured out that she had help they would be more on guard. As it was I hoped to sneak her out of town as soon as possible and regroup.

  “Okay. A hotel?”

  “Katey is staying at the Bella Donna.”

  I nodded.

  “That gives you an excuse to be there. Let’s go.”

  We rolled out slowly, trying not to draw their eye. But if he was tracking her somehow- well, we had bigger problems.

  I got us a room on the same floor as Katey’s and we went up. Caro went to see her friend but I stayed behind for a minute. I needed to call Joss.

  And I didn’t want Caro to hear what I said.

  Or the panic I was fighting to hide from her.

  I explained the situation. As usual Joss was a man of few words. But those words sent ice through my veins.

  “I’ll be right there. Ditch her phone. In a moving vehicle if you can.”

  I ran down the hall and knocked on Katey’s door.

  A surprised face opened the door.

  “Hey Katey.”

  She smiled at me. We’d grown up together too. But now wasn’t the time for niceties.

  “Phone now!”

  Caro was sitting on the bed across the room. Without hesitation she grabbed her bag and pulled out her phone. I gave her a reassuring wink as I took it and ran for the stairs. I was in the lobby in five minutes.

  I looked around, thinking frantically.

  There was a row of taxi’s and limos out front. I walked along the line, pretending to be on the phone. As one of the cabs pulled away, I tossed the phone into the open back window.

  The driver kept going, without looking back.

  Fucking A.

  Carolina

  A knock came on the door. I smiled weakly at Katey. We were both on edge, to say the least. Slowly, she went to open it.

  “Who is it?”

  “It’s me Katey.”

  She slumped in relief.

  It was Chan. As usual, a warm feeling flooded my body at the sight of him. He looked at me, his face serious.

  “Joss is here.”

  I nodded and stood. Katey tried to follow us into the hallway but Chan stopped her.

  “You stay here hon. The less you know, the better.”

  Katey watched as we left.

  “Lock the door behind you. Maybe watch a movie or take a bath. Try not to worry, okay?”

  I stared at Chan in the hallway once the door was closed.

  “Take a bath?”

  He shrugged sheepishly.

  “I thought that might relax her.”

  I rolled my eyes at him. He was adorable. I stifled the urge to throw my arms around his neck and squeeze him.

  Uh oh.

  I forced myself to focus as we went back to his room. His friend Joss was waiting inside. He was… intimidating.

  Tall, with dark hair and piercing eyes, Joss looked like a model. Other than the whole not smiling thing.

  I had a weird feeling he didn’t smile much at all.

  I looked back and forth from Joss to Chan and back again. They looked like two sides of the same coin. Tall, check. Gorgeous, check. Strong and fit, check. That’s where the resemblance ended though.

  Chan was all sunshine and laughs. This guy was… not.

  He looked moody as hell. Serious. And judging from those muscles and the gun he wore at his hip, I was glad he was on our side.

  “You got rid of the phone?”

  Chan nodded.

  “Yeah, I tossed it in a cab as it was leaving.”

  “Good. Hopefully they won’t backtrack to here.”

  Joss turned to me.

  “We got another girl out of town last night. Did Chan tell you?”

  I shook my head, terror filling my gut.

  “You can’t go home. And you can’t go to work. And you definitely can’t go through with the wedding.”

  I nodded. I knew all that. But it was still awful to hear.

  “What girl?”

  They glanced at each other then back at me.

  “I think you should sit down.”

  I sat. Chan stared at me with a look of true sorrow. Like he knew Joss was about to tel
l me something devastating.

  He was right.

  “Max Herchou is part of a Russian crime syndicate.”

  “But he’s Swedish…”

  Joss shook his head.

  “Half Swedish. Half Russian. His father was well connected.”

  “What does that even mean?”

  “It means he runs drugs, women, you name it.”

  “Women?”

  “Women who are trafficked into this country and forced into prostitution.”

  My mind went blank for a moment. Max? Prostitutes? It seemed like a stretch, even for him.

  “He also extorts from several restaurants and clubs. Mostly strip clubs.”

  I swallowed. This was worse than I thought. Much worse. But I could tell Joss was not making this up.

  “He has a… preference. For small blond women.”

  My hand went to my throat. Chan was beside me in a moment, his arm around me, steadying me.

  “He doesn’t treat them well. He’s violent. It seems to be a part of his routine.”

  “How many?”

  The words came out in a voice I didn’t recognize. Hoarse. Reedy. Desperate.

  Joss shook his head.

  “I’m not sure. Dozens over the years. I tracked down several from the past few months.”

  I stood up suddenly.

  “I feel sick.”

  I ran to the bathroom. I stared at the toilet for half a second before I vomited. There wasn’t much in my stomach thank the Lord.

  I was embarrassed all the same.

  I stared into the mirror at my flushed face. In the space of an hour, my eyes had changed. They were more knowing somehow. Older. Wiser.

  Haunted.

  I splashed cold water on my face and came out. I couldn’t hide from Chan forever. And oddly enough, I didn’t want to.

  When I came out Chan was showing Joss out. They shook hands. Joss turned and nodded to me.

  “See you tomorrow.”

  “Joss-“

  He turned to look at me.

  “Thank you.”

  He gave me the tiniest smile. He put his hand on Chan’s shoulder. And then he was gone.

  Chan shut the door behind him and smiled at me.

  “Room service?”

  I nodded. It was weird, but I was absolutely famished.

  “I guess running from thugs works up an appetite.”

  “Why don’t you rinse off?”

  I felt self-conscious suddenly. Even if I was thinking about him kissing me, being naked around a man was much farther than anything that had crossed my mind. Even if there was a door between us.

  “I don’t have anything to wear.”

  “I’ll go ask Katey to loan you something.”

  Twenty minutes later I was clean and wearing a pretty cotton nightgown courtesy of my friend. My very mischievous friend.

  The nightgown was see through.

  Not X rated, just soft worn cotton that you could clearly see my nipples through. I had rinsed my bra and panties out in the sink and was waiting for them to dry. It wasn’t happening fast enough.

  I sighed and pulled the belt of the hotel robe tighter around my waist.

  I couldn’t sit in here forever.

  “Soup’s on!”

  I cracked a smile. Everyone back home said that when food was ready. It made me feel better immediately.

  Chan was pushing the rolling room service table up to the bed. There was only one chair and it was enormous. I guess we were going to eat on the bed.

  The big, bad, dangerous bed.

  He’d ordered us both chopped salads without asking. He knew me. He knew I hated the thought of animals dying for my food.

  That’s another thing Max hadn’t really cared about.

  We ate in silence for a while, both of us famished. I was almost finished and wondering what to do about the sleeping situation when I heard his husky voice. He was so close; I could feel the heat coming off his body.

  I liked it. I liked it a lot.

  “How’s Katey?”

  I looked up at him from my food.

  “She’s great. She’s been having a blast with Shari all week.”

  He smiled at me benignly.

  “And Bear.”

  “What?”

  He started laughing. He was as surprised as I’d been apparently. I gave him a probing look.

  “Did you tell Bear to start dating my friend?”

  He shook his head, barely able to speak between guffaws.

  “Does Bear look like somebody could tell him to do anything? I wish- I wish I could see them together!”

  I tried to picture the enormous Bear and tiny, hilarious Shari together. She was short and curvy. Bear was close to seven feet tall and all muscle. Shari never shut up. Bear had only grunted the few times I’d spoken to him.

  I started laughing too.

  “I think- I think they are perfect for each other!”

  We both fell backwards, unable to stop the giggles from coming. As my laughter slowed I realized Chan was staring at me. I turned my head and my breath caught in my throat.

  The heat in his eyes… the promise… it took my breath away.

  “Caro…”

  I was lying on a bed. With Chan.

  He was getting closer.

  He was about to kiss me.

  I held my breath, wondering if I should let him.

  And then he did kiss me. And I didn’t do a thing to stop it.

  Ohhhhhh.

  His lips felt amazing against mine. He felt so good. He smelled so good.

  Heaven help me I kissed him back.

  Chapter Ten

  Chandler

  It was finally happening. After all these years. I could hardly believe my luck.

  Caro was letting me kiss her.

  I forced myself to hold back. I didn’t want to rush things or scare her off. I kissed her softly. Not moving. Not yanking her against me.

  When all I wanted to do was rip her clothes off of her and bury myself inside her.

  And never, ever come out.

  Well, there were a few things I wanted to do first. Like touch her. Taste her. Look at her. Make her scream. Twice.

  To hell with it.

  With a groan I pulled her against me. I wasn’t rough, but I wasn’t stopping either. I rolled her onto her back and threw one leg over hers. My tongue danced with hers.

  I felt like I’d won the God damn lottery.

  She was kissing me back.

  Carolina Murphy was kissing me back.

  The prom queen was letting me have my way with her. Well, more or less. I knew she’d barely even petted before. I could tell by the way she’d responded to me at The Show.

  The way she was responding now.

  Like a kitten testing its legs.

  I tested the waters, letting my hands slide up and over her chest. I was rewarded with a sexy mewling sound. I heaved a sigh of relief.

  She liked it.

  Caro was the hot little piece I’d always imagined she would be. Fiery. Responsive. Passionate. And I’d spent quite a lot of time over the years imagining just this moment. She might have signed a chastity vow, but frigid, she was not.

  I groaned again. The damn pledge. I knew I could make her doubt it. But I realized abruptly that I didn’t want to make her break it.

  I did want to make her want to break it however…

  This night was not going to end with me inside her. But that didn’t mean we couldn’t have fun. Or that I couldn’t make her feel as desperate as I was.

  I slid my hand up and under her robe. She squeaked and sat up, staring at me. Her hands clutched the hem of her bathrobe as if it was going to fly up and expose her. I stared at her, trying to show her my intentions were good.

  Well, mostly good.

  “Caro…”

  She shook her head wildly.

  “I’m not wearing anything. Underneath.”

  I laughed. I felt like I was going crazy.
Maybe I was.

  “Five minutes Caro. Give me five minutes. Please. I won’t do anything that you don’t want.”

  “Chan… you know I can’t.”

  My fingers brushed the inside of her knee. Just a few inches up and I would be touching thigh. A few inches more and… I groaned as my cock lurched in my jeans.

  “Just let me… play…”

  She stared at me, her big eyes full of doubt. She was curious too. About what might happen. I could see it.

  “You promise not to do anything else?”

  I could hear the hope in her voice. The desperation. Neither one of us wanted to stop.

  “I promise, Caro. Please don’t make me stop. Not yet…”

  I smiled at her disarmingly, guiding her back onto the bed.

  “Remind me of these rules again… I can touch. Just not inside right?”

  She nodded breathlessly.

  I grinned.

  “I can work with that.”

  Slowly I tugged on the belt to her bathrobe. We both held our breaths as I gently opened it to reveal… a plain white nightgown.

  There was a pink bow at the neck. It was shapeless, with thin cotton straps.

  Her full, gorgeous breasts were just barely visible through the worn fabric. I could see the shadowy pink of her nipples. And the alluring triangle between her legs.

  It was the most erotic thing I’d ever seen in my life.

  My mouth went dry as I let my fingers slide over her nightie. Her nipples poked through the fabric as I teased them. Then I let my hands run all over her body.

  I felt like I’d just run a touchdown. Or won a gold medal.

  No.

  The world fucking series.

  My hands felt hot where they skimmed her perfect curves, Her thighs… her belly… then up again to toy with her beautiful breasts.

  I leaned down to kiss her as I reached for the hem of her nightie. And slowly started to lift it.

  Very, very slowly.

  Caro didn’t seem to notice. She was kissing me back, her soft hands on my shoulders. I pulled back when I couldn’t stand it anymore. I needed the damn nightie off of her.

  NOW.

  “Lift your arms.”

  Her huge eyes blinked at me in surprise. I knew I was going a little faster than she might have expected. But she did as I asked. I groaned as her beautiful body came into view.

  Her breasts were perfect, round and juicy, just right for her tiny frame. Her waist was tiny and her hips begged for a man to grab them. And her legs… her legs went on for miles.