by Jessica Wood
The Chase
Volume Two
PROLOGUE
“Ben, sometimes the most important things in life will happen when you least expect it. So who knows, maybe someday you’ll meet the most important person in your life on some seemingly ordinary day without even knowing it.”
That was one of the last things the Blonde Bitch from my past had said to me the moment she’d ripped out my heart. And that was one of the few things I couldn’t seem to erase from my memories of her, regardless of how many nameless women I’d fucked since then.
That is complete bullshit. I had thought that then, and I still thought that now.
Those were the statements made by the same type of people who believed that Valentine’s Day was an actual holiday and not some commercialized bullshit of a day created by Hallmark to make their billions. Those were the statements made by the same type of people who believed in love. Those were the statements made by the same type of people who thought it was possible to forgive and forget. Those were the statements made by the weak person I once was, when I still had a heart, when I had allowed another person to dictate my life.
But now, I’d changed for the better. I wasn’t one of those fools who believed in such nonsense. I had learned my lesson the hard way. The only thing I wanted now was to live a long and commitment-free life.
But ten years after the Blonde Bitch’s words, it had happened.
It was on an idle Wednesday evening that I had met Blair Parker—the brunette with the infinity tattoo on her wrist.
I had stopped by the grocery store on my way home from work to pick up my weekly supply of Trojan condoms—something I went through almost as frequently as my morning coffee. The second I spotted her, I knew she’d be my next target. As I had eyed her from head to toe, I thought I was ready for this chase and went in for the kill.
But I was wrong. I hadn’t been ready for this chase. Not by a long shot.
She was the wicked curve ball I’d never expected. She was the first woman to talk back to me, the first woman to resist me, the first woman to taunt me and take control of our cat-and-mouse game. She was the one woman for whom I had broken my one and only rule to chase down. And when I finally conquered her as my 736th notch on my proverbial belt, I thought I’d finally won. I thought I could move on.
But I was once again wrong.
The second I had felt myself inside of her, I knew something was different this time around. Somehow without knowing it was happening, she had planted an insatiable need inside of me, a thirst for more of everything she had to offer. She was like a drug, and one taste of her had taken me on an indescribable high I didn’t want to come down from. I was hooked and I needed more.
But then life threw me another curve ball.
I was offered an opportunity of a lifetime. It was an opportunity to achieve the success I’d worked so hard for. It was an opportunity anyone in my position would kill for. It was an opportunity that I’d be crazy to say no to.
But there was a catch. There was a price to pay. There was something I needed to do in exchange for this opportunity.
To become the youngest partner at the most prestigious international law firm, William & Sutter LLP, I had to make Blair the casualty of my success.
Chapter One
Blair
A hushed male voice in the other room woke me. I couldn’t make out what the man was saying, but something about that voice caused every nerve in my body to come alive with need.
I moaned as I shifted in the bed, slowly awakening from my heavy sleep. It took me another second to realize that I was naked under a layer of white satin sheets in a hotel room. Then, as if someone had opened the floodgates to my memories, everything that had happened last night with Ben came rushing into my consciousness.
“Shit,” I groaned under my breath as I searched the room for my clothes. I got out of the bed, wrapping the sheet around my body. I could still hear Ben’s voice from the bathroom. It sounded like he was on a call. “Fuck, I need to get out of here.” Panic coursed through me as I cringed at the memories of everything we’d done last night. How did I let things get this far? How did I let myself lose control like that?
In less than a minute, I was back in my Cleopatra outfit and heading toward the door, bracing myself for the walk of shame down to the underground garage of the hotel where my car was parked.
“Where are you going?” His sudden voice behind me jolted me to a halt.
My body stiffened as I felt his eyes burn into my back. I took a deep breath before turning around to face him. “I’m leaving.”
“That’s it?”
“What are you talking about?” I finally met his eyes as I tried to figure out the meaning behind his question.
“Were you just going to leave like that without saying a word?”
His tone was cold but I saw a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.
“What’s there to say?” I kept my voice flat as I held his gaze without showing my emotions. “I have a meeting this morning, so I need to leave.”
“On a Saturday morning?” He cocked an eyebrow skeptically.
“Yes,” I lied. “On a Saturday morning.” I was relieved that my voice hadn’t betrayed me and given away my lie.
“Well…” He paused and I saw his face soften as he looked at me. “I thought that after last night, we could go grab some breakfast and talk or something.” He watched me for a second and his lips twisted into a crooked smile. “Or we can just enjoy some strong coffee together.”
My stomach flipped at his invitation. There was a part of me that wanted to say yes. There was a part of me that wanted to be anyone but Blair Parker at that moment so that I could freely explore whatever it was that I was feeling with this man.
But reality was a bitch, and that wasn’t my fate. After everything that’d happened, after everything I’d given up, I’d worked too hard to have the wrong relationship ruin it all. Even if I were to overlook our professional relationship, I knew the type of guy Ben was. He was certainly in the “wrong relationship” category.
“Look, you’re my lawyer, and I’m your client. I think that’s all there is to it.” I turned my back to him as I tried to keep my personal feelings at bay. “Let’s just pretend last night didn’t happen. I think that’ll be the best thing for both of us.” I reached for the door and opened it.
“Stop.”
Something in his commanding voice caused me to obey, and I stood in the middle of the opened door waiting for his next move. I wasn’t sure what it was about this man, but even from our very first interaction that night at the grocery store, I knew he had a power over me that I’d never felt before. I heard him approach me in silence. Every part of my brain screamed at me to walk out the door and leave immediately before this mistake became any bigger.
But my body wouldn’t listen as it rooted me in place.
I inhaled sharply when I felt his hands around my waist.
“What do you think you’re doing?” My question stammered out as I tried to suppress the growing need for him inside me.
“What do you think?” There was an edge of danger in his voice, and I knew I had angered him. His hold was firm and forceful as he pulled me toward him.
“Ben, stop it.” I tried to push his hands off me.
“Say my name again.” He moved one hand down my side, tightening his grip as his fingers moved down on my skin.
“We can’t do this again,” I begged.
“But—” he turned me around suddenly, forcing me to face him, and pulled me up against his naked body, his stiff manhood rubbed against the thin fabric of my Cleopatra outfit. “We will do this again. Because…” He held my waist with one hand as his other hand moved up to my face. His fingers traced the outlines of my face. “When I hear my name from those lips of yours…” He inserted his thumb between my lips. “I lose it, and all I can think about is the sheer pleasure of more than just my finger being inside of you.”
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sp; Against all reason, my lips molded around his thumb as it entered my mouth. His rough, callused skin was salty and hard against my tongue, and as it moved seductively between my lips, desire took a hold of me and I began to suck and lick his finger as I imagined his cock in its place.
“God, baby. You’re seriously driving me crazy.” He closed his eyes and threw his head back, and I watched with wild eyes as I saw his erection grow before me.
Suddenly he removed his thumb from my mouth and lifted me up onto the hallway console.
“We really can’t.” I squirmed in his hands as he spread my legs apart and ran his hands up along the inside of my thighs.
“Don’t play coy with me. I know you want this.” His voice was deep and hoarse as his hands disappeared under my skirt and slid behind my panties. “Now tell me you want this.”
I saw the fire burn in his eyes and I lost the last shred of control I’d been holding onto. Gasping for air, I spread my legs wider and nodded desperately for him to continue whatever he wanted to do with me.
“No. That’s not enough.” His commanding voice came out deep and restrained. “I want to hear you say you want this.”
“I don’t,” I managed to say in a last futile attempt to resist him. But then I felt one of his fingers move across my opening and I became wet against his touch.
He leaned into me, his hot breath against my neck. “Say it.”
I lost it at that moment. “I want it!” I screamed as I braced against the console for support.
Instead of entering me with his fingers, he pulled down my panties and lowered his face toward my pussy.
“Fuck, you’re so wet, baby.” His eyes were wide with desire as he looked up at me from between my legs.
“Please, I want you now!” I cried out as the need for him became almost painful.
He snickered. “I love this demanding side of yours.” He held my gaze as he moved closer to my opening. I could feel the heat of his breath as he inhaled my scent and groaned in pleasure. “Ms. Parker, if you smell this fucking amazing, I cannot image how incredibly sweet you’re going to taste on my tongue.”
I swallowed hard at his words and tried to arch myself toward his face, desperate to close the inch of space between where his mouth was and where I wanted it to be. But I couldn’t move. His rough hands held me down, controlling my every moment, reminding me who was currently in control.
But I didn’t have to wait long before my need for him was quenched. I inhaled sharply as I felt his tongue hypnotically circle around my clit before it started to lick me up and down.
“Let me hear it again.” I heard a mixture of need and control in his voice as he waited for me to comply.
“Please,” I whimpered, desperate for what he would do next.
“Please what?”
“Please, I want this!” I cried, knowing he wouldn’t give me what I wanted if I didn’t say the exact words he wanted to hear.
Finally, I felt his wet tongue plunge inside me, causing my body to convulse against his every thrust. As he moved faster and deeper inside me, he pushed me inch by inch toward my release.
Just as I was about to come all over his face, my phone started ringing in my purse, immediately bringing me out of my euphoric haze. It wasn’t just any call. From the special ringtone that sounded, I knew it was my brother Trent.
My body stiffened as I came back to reality. Shit, what the fuck am I doing?
“Stop! Please stop.” With all the strength I could muster, I pushed Ben off me. “We can’t do this.” My voice was shaky but determined as my phone continued to ring, jolting me awake with each passing second.
“What the fuck?” There was a mixture of hurt and anger in his eyes when he looked up at me in confusion.
“I should go. I need to take this call.”
“That call can wait,” he insisted as he forced my legs apart again.
“No.” I got off the console. “It’s Trent. It cannot wait. I shouldn’t even be here.” I glared at him.
To my surprise, instead of challenging me and taking control of the situation, he froze and backed off. “Are you really going to take that right now?”
There was something in his voice that left me unsettled. But before I could think about it further, my phone began ringing again, demanding my immediate attention. “Yes, I need to take this.”
Before Ben had a chance to distract me again, I walked quickly to the door and walked out of the room. As soon as I got out of earshot of Ben’s hotel room, I answered the phone.
“Hi, Trent.”
“Where the hell have you been? How come it took you so long to respond?”
From his heavy breathing and booming voice, I knew he was not in a good mood. “Sorry. I—uh, I was in the shower.”
“It’s almost ten, Blair.”
“I—” I tried to explain, but he cut me off.
“Even though it’s a Saturday, you’re now the acting Vice President of the company. I know you’re still young, but I shouldn’t have to remind you how important your role is, and how much responsibility comes with that title. It’s not just some pretty accessory you can add to your enormous wardrobe.”
“Trent, sorry. I overslept. I stayed out a little longer than I had expected at William & Sutter’s Halloween party.”
“Blair, I don’t need any excuses, nor do I need to know why you didn’t pick up the phone when I called. I just want to make sure your head is in the game. If there was some emergency and I needed to reach you, I want to feel assured that you’ll be there at a moment’s notice.”
“I understand that. I know we’re in the middle of a critical time for the company. With Dad’s sudden illness, I know you have a lot of pressure on you to keep the company running smoothly. I promise you that I will do my very best.”
“Let’s hope that’s enough,” he spat back. “I know you’re a woman, and it’s harder for you to compartmentalize your emotions over Dad’s illness from your work, but you need to get your shit together. We’re running a company here. Don’t expect that I’ll give you more leeway simply because we’re family. I’m not Dad. I won’t coddle you. You’re twenty-four years old and an adult. It’s time you acted that way.”
I flinched at the hostility in his voice. “Don’t worry. I don’t want you to treat me any differently because we’re family. I do take my responsibilities as Vice President seriously. I will carry my weight in the company.”
“Speaking of which, I got your email yesterday about transferring your communications with our lawyers to me. For your sake, I’m going to pretend that I didn’t receive that email from you in your attempt to try to shirk your responsibilities. It’s your job as VP to spearhead this international acquisition deal. I have more than enough on my plate right now. I don’t need to micro-manage that deal or your communications with our lawyers.”
I inhaled deeply as I tried to hold back the tears. “I understand. I have no problem with handling the acquisition deal with our lawyers.”
“Let’s hope that’s the case. Anyway, I called because I need you to review the financial documents I emailed you last night. Verify the figures and send me the final version by tonight. I’ll double-check the numbers tomorrow morning and will send you the final approved version by the afternoon. I need you to take them over to Dad at the hospital and have him sign off on the paperwork.”
“Okay. Sure. I can take care of it.”
“Good.” Without another word, he hung up on me.
When I got to my car, I sat there in silence for several minutes, trying to process my conversation with Trent before starting the engine. I knew Trent was under a lot of pressure with his new responsibilities as CEO of Parker, Inc., but I had this unnerving feeling that there was something more to his actions.
Just then, my phone beeped, alerting me to a new email. My body froze when I saw that it was from Ben.
To: B. Parker
From: Ben Chase
Re: A Great Cup of Joe
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Blair,
Seeing how close we’ve gotten recently through our professional relationship, we can drop the formalities and address each other on a first name basis.
It was great seeing you at our firm’s Halloween party last night. My date and I agreed that you had a very stunning costume.
I wanted to tell you that right after I left the party last night, I had three amazing cups of coffee. They were all strong, smooth, and deeeeeelicious. In fact, they were so good, I’m already having some withdrawal symptoms, and am in need of another cup. ASAP. Care to join me? We can talk about the deal and work through all hours of the day and night if you’d like. As you know, at William & Sutter, we always put our clients first and aim to please. As such, I am available to you at your convenience.
Also, now come to think of it, the subject line really should read be “A Great Cup of Ben.” Don’t you agree?
Ben
Associate
William & Sutter LLP.
When I finished reading his email, I realized that I was grinning ear to ear. I immediately wiped the smile off my face as Trent’s words echoed in my head. I reminded myself that Ben Chase was our lawyer—he could be nothing more to me. I couldn’t risk my position at Parker, Inc. because of a momentary weakness and mistake last night with this man. I couldn’t tarnish my reputation and jeopardize everything I’d worked for. This was my father’s company, and I wanted to make him proud. So I knew that I couldn’t have anything to do with Ben. And with that thought, I responded back.
To: Ben Chase
From: B. Parker
Re: You’re Right
Mr. Chase:
I’m glad to hear to know that William & Sutter puts their clients’ needs first. Along those lines, as the client, I suggest we continue with the formalities.
Thank you for the coffee offer, but I must decline. I’m actually in a caffeine detox, so I will not be drinking any more coffee. Enjoy that coffee without me.
Also, going forward, I will continue to be your point person in the Parker, Inc.’s acquisition deal. I asked that you keep contact with me at a minimum and only when necessary. We would like to keep our legal costs down.