by Mari Carr
“Other family?”
“My dad has a brother who’s married with some kids, but they live in St. Louis. We haven’t seen them in a few years.”
“He wouldn’t help out if you called?”
“I…yeah. He would. Okay,” she said, blowing out a hard breath. “I get it. I have too much pride and not enough sense. I’ll call Uncle Todd next week.” The distance between her dad and her uncle had been physical, not emotional. He’d flown in to be with them the last few days before her father passed and taken charge of the funeral preparations. He had called once a week for months after Dad’s death, but she’d always assured him they were fine. After a while, the calls dwindled to less often and he took her at her word in regards to how they were getting along, accepting the “we’re fine” at face value. Her uncle wasn’t rich, but he definitely would send them some money to help with the kitchen repairs if she asked.
Just the thought of asking made her uneasy.
“Put the wineglass down, May.”
“Why?”
He narrowed his eyes, letting her know he wasn’t going to repeat his request.
She did as he asked, placing the glass on a coaster. He did the same.
“There are two things we’re going to have to work on.”
“Work on?” she asked.
“You lie to me when you think it’ll end a conversation quicker. You have no intention of calling your uncle, do you?”
She bit her lower lip, trying to figure out what was the smartest move. Tell the truth, continue the lie, or just pick up the phone and call Uncle Todd.
“Don’t bother answering. That leads to the second thing we need to work on. Your inability to ask for help.”
“You might have a better shot at getting me to stop lying,” she joked.
“Very cute.” He did look amused. She liked being able to make him laugh. It wasn’t that he was a super serious guy. In truth, he had a great sense of humor, a quick wit. Maybe that was why she liked amusing him. Because it meant she’d said something genuinely funny.
“Ask me for something,” Lochlan said.
“Like what?”
“Anything that would help you.”
She wiggled her eyebrows provocatively, something she would never have done if not for the wine, the orgasm and the sleep. For the first time in ages, she actually felt energetic and frisky.
“Not sexual,” he added.
“This lesson just got a lot less fun.”
Lochlan laughed, but didn’t back down. “Think about everything that’s going on with Linda and the girls, and figure out the one thing that would help you the most, that would take away the most stress.”
She leaned back, trying to play the game, but she wasn’t sure how to reply. And not because the list wasn’t as long as her arm, but because she would never ask anyone for any of it.
“Money?” he prompted.
May shook her head emphatically. “No. I pay my own way.” Or at the very least, she carefully managed her ever-growing debt.
“Childcare?”
“That costs money.”
“A new place to live?”
“Also money.”
Lochlan sighed. “Let’s start smaller. A night out. One night away from your family to go out and do whatever you want, to have some fun.”
That sounded like a dream, but also impossible. “I already spend too much time away. I need more time with them, not less.”
“One afternoon off a week.”
Suddenly this felt less like a friendly conversation and more like bargaining with her boss. She shook her head.
“May—” he started.
She had to appease him, so she picked something easy. “I’d like to sleep in a real bed. All night. One night. The couch is old and sunken in, which means there’s this damn spring that hits me right in the middle of my back and drives me nuts.”
It was a request, though she could tell he wasn’t impressed. Regardless, he rose. “That’s an easy thing to give.”
He reached down for her hand, so she grasped his, the act almost instinctual after a few days of holding it. She expected him to lead her to the guest room, but Lochlan made no move to leave the living room.
Instead, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him, his mouth coming down to cover hers in a deep, warm kiss.
May knew she should pull away, find a way to return them to the professional distance they’d maintained throughout the first few months of her employment. She also knew she wasn’t going to do that.
Lochlan said she couldn’t ask for what she wanted. He was right.
But that didn’t mean she couldn’t take what she wanted. And right now…that was him.
He broke the kiss, his eyes locked with hers.
“You’re beautiful,” he murmured.
She smiled, surprised by the sudden dampness of her lashes. Was she paid so few compliments that hearing one made her cry?
May reached up and cupped his cheek, wanting very much to touch him, to keep this close connection between them alive.
Lochlan bent over, his intent confusing, until he put one arm beneath her knees and lifted.
She gasped as he carried her from the living room.
“I can walk.”
He grinned, not bothering to look down at her, his eyes focused on his direction. “And I can carry you. We’re both very skilled.”
She giggled. “Smart-ass,” she whispered, her taunt provoking a quiet laugh from him.
Lochlan walked straight to his bedroom once more. She had asked to sleep in a real bed and she had hoped it would be his.
However, she didn’t assume it would be.
“There’s another bed across the hall.” She didn’t want to sleep in it, but she felt the need to lay their cards out on the table in regards to exactly what was happening tonight.
“The only bed you’ll ever sleep in when you’re here is mine.”
He placed her on her feet, then walked to a large, overstuffed chair near the huge window and sat down.
May tilted her head curiously. “It’s a big bed. You hardly have to sleep in a chair.”
Lochlan smiled. “I have no intention of staying in this chair. You and I are going to share that bed.”
A coy woman might have hidden the huge grin his comment produced, but May didn’t have it in her to pretend. “Okay.”
Lochlan leaned back, rubbing the lower part of his face with his hand. She couldn’t tell if he was thinking or hiding his own smile.
“I’m not your boss when we’re here,” he began.
“So you keep saying.” She didn’t believe those words now any more than she had earlier. There was no way to keep what they were here out of what they were at work. The sexually charged morning she spent draped over his desk proved that. This was going to bite them both in the ass if things went south.
He narrowed his eyes, clearly reading her thoughts. “However, I am still in charge.”
Now it was her turn to scowl. “What do you mean?”
“Take off your clothes.”
“What about yours?”
She recalled the way he’d made himself appear larger when they were confronting Jenks after the fire. Somehow Lochlan managed to repeat that feat now, even though he was still sitting in the chair. One moment, he was relaxed, friendly, the next, he appeared to be made of steel, pure muscle and might.
That trick performed for Jenks had made her feel safe and protected. Tonight, she felt like prey. And what was more alarming was the fact she wanted to bare her neck to the beast.
Lochlan was sitting casually, his legs crossed at the ankles, one elbow resting on the arm of the chair. It was his eyes that told her the truth, not his body.
One glance at them let her know he wouldn’t ask again, nor would he be denied for long.
She was taking off her clothes. Period.
May slipped the button free on her skirt, then slid the zipper down. She shimmied the
material over her hips, leaving her panties in place. Then she undid her blouse, adding it to the small pile of clothing on the floor. She remained before him in just her bra and panties for a moment, digging deep to find the courage to continue.
Lochlan’s gaze was too intense, too powerful.
She wanted to run.
She wanted to give him everything.
He held his pose, but his body language continued to lie, to give the impression he was relaxed when she suspected he was anything but. Lochlan rubbed his lower lip with his index finger, considering her disrobing, not making any further comment. He reminded her of a live wire, one wrong move and she would be in for one hell of a jolt.
Right now, he wanted her naked, and he seemed to know that she was powerless to refuse, that she’d give him what he wanted. Whatever he wanted.
May wished she could understand this instinctual behavior of hers, this desire to do exactly as Lochlan commanded. She could control herself in all things, except this. In this domain, she was defenseless.
That idea should scare her, but in truth, being with Lochlan was the only place she felt free. Safe.
Reaching behind her back, she unclasped her bra. The straps fell loose and she shrugged the entire thing off. Bending slightly, she worked the panties off as well. Once she was completely naked, she did the hardest thing of all. She held her arms at her sides and let him look his fill as her eyes remained locked on his face.
“Come here, May.”
She had taken three steps before she even finished processing the request. She closed the distance between them, not stopping until she was a few feet from his chair.
Lochlan reached for her, his hand idly stroking her hip for a few seconds, before he straightened. “Straddle my lap, facing me.”
Once again, she moved without considering the next step.
So much of her day was spent figuring out how to get from point A to point Z without losing everything. Right here, right now, she only had to obey. Lochlan would do all the thinking.
The chair was large enough to accommodate his request, and she briefly wondered how many women had joined him on it. She shoved that thought away.
The past had no more place here than the future. If she was throwing caution to the wind, it would only work if she remained in the present.
She started to sink down, but Lochlan used his grip on her bare ass to draw her even closer to him, so that as she lowered, her pussy rested against his erection, the material of his pants still a barrier between them.
Lochlan took one of her breasts in his hand, squeezing it gently before rubbing the nipple between his index finger and thumb.
“Are you on the Pill?”
She shook her head.
“Make an appointment tomorrow with your doctor.”
“Lochlan—” she started.
“Don’t, May. Don’t give me the reasons why this isn’t going to continue. Because it is.”
She felt the slightest twinge of panic at his pronouncement. It went against the silent bargaining she was doing with herself, allowing herself just one night to indulge these desires before returning to life as usual.
A wise woman would get up and leave now. Or at the very least, a woman with half a brain would argue the point, try to make the man see reason.
What she would not do was close her eyes and moan when the man placed his lips around her tight nipple and sucked it hard.
She was officially an idiot.
May gripped Lochlan’s hair in her fists, holding his mouth against her, her head thrown back as she tried to assimilate to the pure bliss of his mouth on her breast. He teased her sensitive nipple with his tongue and then—God help her—his teeth. Her pussy clenched, empty, needy.
She drew one hand down to the spot that needed stimulation, touching her clit, rubbing it as another, louder moan escaped.
That was as much as she was able to do before Lochlan’s iron grip encapsulated her wrist, pulling her hand away. Lucky for her, she had two hands. Releasing his hair, she intended to resume stroking herself, but Lochlan caught that wrist as well, tugging both of them behind her back.
“Lock your fingers,” he demanded.
She started to shake her head, the haze of pure need fading enough that she could see his frown. He looked…angry?
“Lock your fingers or I’ll tie your hands behind your back.”
That threat did nothing to soothe her. She suspected she was leaving a damp spot on the front of Lochlan’s pants. She was too turned on, too wet.
He was still holding her wrists, so he knew the moment she complied, interlacing her fingers. His grip loosened.
“Hold them there until I say otherwise.”
The new position thrust her breasts out farther, something Lochlan was ready to take advantage of. He resumed his sucking, his mouth taking one nipple then the other, back and forth, for too many torturous minutes.
May started to squirm, trying to press her clit against his erection, seeking some much-needed stimulation. Lochlan put an end to that by gripping her hips, holding her in place.
She cursed, but that only provoked a warning glance from Lochlan. Common sense fled in the face of genuine painful need.
Her fingers unlocked. Moving quickly, she managed two quick strokes before her world went topsy-turvy. One minute she was straddling his lap, the next, Lochlan had her on her back in the center of his bed, tying her spread eagle to the four posts.
He made quick work of her arms because it took her that long to figure out what he was doing. She presented more of a challenge with her legs, fighting desperately to rub her thighs together, to calm the overwhelming ache that wouldn’t go away until it was filled.
“Lochlan, dammit—”
He cut her off. “Think long and hard about your next words, May. Any other woman would have found herself over my lap, getting her ass spanked already.”
She’d been on the receiving end of that particular “punishment” before. It felt too good to encourage correction.
“Let me clarify,” Lochlan said. “I would use my belt…and you wouldn’t enjoy it.”
May stilled—and it occurred to her she’d let this go too far without words, without explanation. “I don’t understand what we’re doing here.”
Lochlan was kneeling between her legs, one ankle in his hands. He’d intended to tie it to the bedpost. That was when May realized the straps holding her hands had already been there.
He dropped her foot, coming over her body, caging her beneath him. He remained fully dressed, something that hadn’t felt weird until that second.
Lochlan kissed her softly, then cupped her face, looking into her eyes. “Bondage wasn’t my intent tonight.”
“What was?”
“Honestly? I simply wanted to make love to you, but you touched yourself and…things escalated, went in the wrong direction.”
“Control issues much?” she teased.
He grinned. “Always. And we’re going to talk about that. Later. Tonight is going to be about something else.”
As he spoke, he unfastened the straps at her wrists. May was equally parts relieved and disappointed by her sudden freedom.
She lowered her arms and decided she wasn’t relieved at all.
“You like being tied up, don’t you?” he asked.
May nodded.
“We’ll do it again, May. I promise.”
“Why do you have straps on your bed?”
Lochlan kissed her, not in an attempt to stop her questions, but because it seemed as if he couldn’t resist her lips. She felt the same way.
“Tomorrow,” he murmured against her mouth. “I’m not sure I have the patience to explain it all tonight.”
He pushed away from her, standing beside the bed. May started to sit up, but he stopped her with a simple shake of his head.
She resumed her position, her legs closing.
Lochlan reached for one ankle, tugging it toward him. “Keep your legs open. Pu
t your hands next to your head, palms up.”
She did as he asked, grinning as she assumed the position. “Feels a bit like a surrender.”
Lochlan didn’t pretend that wasn’t his intent. “Exactly. I know there’s a part of you that’s still resisting me, fighting this. But not tonight.”
May might have tried to respond to that, but Lochlan had started to undress as he spoke, and her attention was distracted by his bare, broad shoulders, ripped abs, and then…
She gasped when his pants and boxer briefs hit the floor.
“Shit,” she whispered, prompting him to chuckle.
He reached into the nightstand table and withdrew a condom. He’d told her to get on birth control, and suddenly she understood why. She liked the idea of him coming inside her with nothing between them. That might not have been his reasoning. Perhaps he was just ultra-careful about preventing pregnancy.
But she still wanted him without the condom.
Lochlan returned to the bed, resuming his previous place above her, his knees resting on the mattress between her outstretched legs. He kissed her again, a long, lingering, deep kiss that had her temperature rising.
She wrapped her ankles around his waist, trying to draw him closer. He didn’t budge; rather, he continued to worship her lips.
Finally, she turned her head to the side, sucking in a deep breath. “Please, Lochlan.”
He reached between them, placing the head of his cock at her entrance. Their eyes met, locked, as he slowly pressed inside.
She tried to hide her response, her quiet “oh” that was a combination of wonder and surprise. She was overwhelmed by his size, by how much he stretched her, filled her. It took her a moment to adjust. The man wasn’t small anywhere.
Lochlan paused for a second, his brows lowering. She got the sense he wanted to say something, but he didn’t. Instead, he moved out incrementally before pushing the rest of the way in.
May expelled a loud breath that was equal parts pain and pleasure.
He kissed her cheeks, his lips touching the shell of her ear as he whispered, “Once we’re finished, you’re going to tell me something you should have said before.”