The Playboy

by Alice Ward

  Never in a million years did I think I’d fall for a woman like Sloane. But I had. I’d fallen without even trying. Within a damn couple of days!

  Funny how shit like that worked. One minute I was partying with three chicks, and the next, I was putting my life at risk by fucking with the mafia.

  Exactly when did I lose my marbles?

  I had no clue, but I had to admit any semblance of the normal Zane had disappeared. I thought about calling Dad to get his advice. I went so far as to pick up my cell. Then I put it down.

  I couldn’t tell a soul about what Sloane wanted to do. Anyone I told that to would tell me to hightail it out of there. And I was pretty sure I should be doing just that. Putting as much distance between me and the coocoo blonde as possible.

  But I wasn’t me anymore. I was a man who had someone who meant something to him. Sloane meant more to me than I could’ve ever imagined.

  “Fuck.”

  I pushed myself to my feet and headed to my door. I opened it, and… there she was.

  We stared at each other for a long moment before she caved first. “Zane, I’m sorry.”

  Something tight in my chest released and I pulled her through the door and into my arms. “Me too.”

  Everything was going to be okay. It had to be. Surely fate wouldn’t be so cruel as to connect me with the perfect woman only to rip her from me just as quickly.

  Sloane’s lips were quivering as if she might be on the verge of tears, so I kissed them to stop that from happening. Moving with her, never letting our mouths part, I led her to the bedroom. Lifting her into my arms, I gently laid her on the bed. Finally, I let my lips leave hers.

  Sliding onto the bed beside her, I leaned on my hand and looked down at her as I traced my finger along her neck and shoulders. “So, we made it through our first argument as an official couple.”

  Her smile was sweet as she pushed her hand through my hair. “We made it. And I don’t want to argue, but I do want to talk about this. Maybe your bed is the best place to come to an agreement.”

  Shit. She wasn’t going to let this go. She wasn’t going to walk away from helping her friend. It seemed I had me a girl with a big heart. I wouldn’t want her to be any other way.

  “To be honest, I want to help your friend too. It’s the part about you being in danger that’s throwing up all sorts of red flags.”

  Her fingers crept over my arm, tracing the lines of my tattoo. “You’ll be there to keep me safe.”

  She had me percolating, pulsing, with that sweet little gaze she was giving me. With no willpower left, I took those luscious lips again. She made a soft little mewling sound, and it was over. Passion welled up inside me, causing my cock to swell against the side of her thigh.

  I would be there to keep her safe. I’d always be there if she’d let me.

  The emotion that was slowly taking me over wasn’t one I’d had before. It wasn’t just from the kiss, it was from something much deeper than just the physical attraction we had for each other. It was mental too.

  I eased the kiss and looked at her as she opened her eyes. “I will be there to keep you safe, Sloane.”

  She smiled and ran her hand over my cheek. “Does that mean we’re done talking?”

  I nodded as I pushed her hair back. The still damp strands moved through my fingers. The scent of hyacinths filled my nostrils as I moved her hair. I took a deep breath and sighed. “I’ve never felt the way I feel with you. It’s something I never want to lose.”

  My flesh prickled as her hand moved under my shirt. “I know what you’re talking about. I feel the same way.”

  There was still something I felt she was hiding or lying about. I needed her to know she could trust me. “Sloane, are you really a photojournalist?”

  Her eyes went wide. “Yes, Zane. God, I know I was hiding the fact I was here to get information about Charles, but I haven’t lied about everything.”

  I studied her. As much as I wanted to believe her, there was something about the way her eyes looked as she said the words. They were too big. But she wasn’t trying too hard to make me believe her, wasn’t forcing the issue. It had me thinking she might be adept at telling lies.

  Why would a photojournalist to be a proficient liar? Sloane was hiding something, but I wouldn’t push her any more at that moment. We were getting along too well to fuck it all up with a bunch of accusing questions.

  “So, after we get what your friend needs, then what happens?” I kissed her shoulder then ran my lips up to her neck.

  She moaned, her nails raking across my back. “After that, I have no idea what will happen.”

  Moving my lips to her ear, I blew into the curved shell, and delighted in how it made her shiver. “You must have an idea of where you were going once you had the information you needed. Where would that be?”

  “Home, I guess. My line of work has me kind of on-call all the time.” She rolled to face me, wrapping one leg over my hip. I groaned as the movement pressed our sexes together through our clothes.

  I pulled my head back to look at her. “How is a photographer on-call?”

  “I stay pretty busy. Between assignments, I usually get contacted by someone needing a rush job. If I have time, I’ll agree to the job. I try to stay flexible.” The way she moved her foot up and down my leg felt amazing. “So, my plan was to go home to Queens and go wherever I’m needed next. What was your plan?”

  Grazing my teeth down her neck then leaving a trail of kisses along her collarbone, I contemplated what I should say. The truth was that I never had a plan, but that just sounded flighty. I didn’t want to sound like a loser with no ambition, which I had been up until I met her. Now I had lots of ambition. Of course, Sloane was at the center of all that ambition. “Whatever my plan was, doesn’t matter. You’re my plan now.”

  Her voice was raspy, and her words warmed me. “I like the sound of that. And what kind of plan do you have for me right now.”

  Moving my hand over her breast and all the way down to her hip, I grabbed a handful of sweet ass and pulled her tight against me. “My current plan includes kissing every inch of the body I’ve craved since you walked into my life.”

  Her nails curled into my shoulder as I felt her body grow warmer. “Yes. Please. I want to feel your lips move all over me, then I want to kiss every inch of you in return.” Her lips pressed against my neck, sending goose bumps to pepper my skin.

  I’d never wanted to move slow and fast at the same damn time, but with her, that was exactly what I wanted. I wanted to go slow and let this thing we had smolder for a while before we let it burst into flames. Our heat would be insane. The sex would be off the charts.

  As bad as I wanted to be inside her, I wanted to build what we had even more than that. I wanted a solid foundation, one that a great relationship could be built on. Nothing quick, nothing temporary. I wanted slow, steady, and lasting.

  Cupping her chin, I ran the pad of my thumb over her plump pink lips. Her blue eyes shimmered as she looked at me. I envisioned looking into those eyes for years to come. I saw a future with Sloane I didn’t ever think I’d be looking at. But there I was, looking into the eyes of a person I couldn’t think about not seeing again.

  “Your eyes mesmerize me, Sloane. When I look hard enough, I can see the future.”

  Her hand caressed mine as she smiled. “Zane, the prophet. I have to say I didn’t see that coming.” The smile fell away and her eyes grew more serious. “The thing is, the future is a fickle bitch. One never knows how it will play out. But yet you claim to see it in my eyes. I wish I had the power you seem to have. I live life one day at a time, never thinking too much about the next day or the day after that. Are you sure you can see more in my eyes than even I can?”

  Was she taking me seriously? Did she not understand I meant to keep her forever? Never let her go?

  “I can see the future in your eyes. Eyes that I will look into even when wrinkles surround them and they lose some of their colo
r as you age. But I will always find love when I look into these eyes of yours. Because I will be the only man who gets to do such a thing for the rest of our lives.”

  Though she was smiling again, I felt her body go cold. Had I surprised her with my intensity? Did she really not have any idea how serious I was?

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Sloane

  Words of unending love shouldn’t make one go cold as ice. And if I wasn’t making up one lie after another, perhaps my reaction would’ve been one of a different nature. But I knew how things would end for us. Unfortunately, Zane did not.

  I was so screwed.

  While I didn’t want him to catch on that I was any less involved than him, the truth was, I had it bad for Zane. After he left my bungalow earlier, I should have let him go. I could have finished this assignment on my own, maybe clinging to Grace and Charles, gaining their sympathy by telling them that Zane had broken my heart. But what did I do instead? I’d gone to him. I’d been about to knock on his door when he’d surprised me by jerking it open.

  And now here we were, and I didn’t know how to make things better.

  His hand moved up and down my arm. “You have goose bumps.”

  “Do I?” I pretended not to notice.

  “Did I scare you?” The sea green pools of his eyes grew stormy as his expression went to one of concern.

  I had to ease his mind. We’d just made up after our first fight, I didn’t want to go back to being angry with each other. Not when he was making me feel so damn good as we laid in his bed. “Who wouldn’t like to hear those words, Zane? Maybe I’m just a little overwhelmed by all this. I’ve never felt this much for someone so fast.”

  That was true. I’d never fallen so quickly before. It was a little unsettling.

  The concern left his handsome face as he gave me a sexy smile. “Good. I’d like to make you feel more… if you’re up for it.”

  My heart sped up. “What do you have in mind?”

  “How about a full body massage? That way you’ll be all relaxed when we go to dinner tonight. And when we get done there, we’ll come back here and spend the night together.” His finger trailed over my lips. “What do you think about that?”

  My head was already growing light, my body pulsing. “I think that sounds wonderful.”

  Leaning in close, he kissed the spot right behind my ear. “Good.” He rolled off the bed and stood, looking down at me. “I’ll get some lotion and be right back. I want you naked and on your stomach.”

  Naked?

  “Um, I think that’s—”

  He shook his head as he walked away. “Naked, Sloane.”

  As if his words alone controlled me, my hands went to work, ridding myself of my clothes. When I was fully naked, I laid back down on the bed, face down, just as he’d directed. My body was prickling all over, the anticipation pulsing through my system.

  I didn’t hear him reenter the room and jumped when he said, “Close those pretty blue eyes. I want to give you a taste of what life will be like with me.”

  My eyes closed as a sigh escaped me. Life with Zane seemed like it would be pretty damn great. Too bad it couldn’t be that way.

  His hands were warm as he started at my ankles, spreading the lotion as he kneaded the muscles of my calves and hamstrings. He stopped at my ass, and I nearly groaned when he started over with the next leg.

  But this time, as he worked those magic fingers up my hamstring, his fingers grazed my sex, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. How badly I wanted to feel him inside me. How easy it would be to just turn over and spread myself open for him. Surely, he wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation.

  But I stayed right where I was and let him do what he wanted. The massage would be good too. Ripples of pleasure went through me as he moved his firm hands up my back then over my shoulders, working the tight muscles there.

  When he straddled me, I felt his hard cock through his clothes. It grazed my ass as he moved, rubbing my shoulders and back with long, flowing motions. My clit pulsed, moist heat pooled between my legs. The massage wasn’t doing what he intended. I was far from relaxed. I was in sexually frustrated hell.

  Just as I was trying to resolve myself to that fact, he moved back and began massaging my ass cheeks. I couldn’t stifle the moan that came low from my throat. He chuckled. “Does this feel good?”

  I made some whimpering noise that was supposed have been, “It does.”

  I was so turned on I wasn’t even embarrassed as he spread my ass cheeks wide and stroked a finger over the tight pucker of muscle. I groaned, trying to push back into the touch. He chuckled, the sound vibrating through my every nerve.

  With no warning, he rolled me until I was on my back. I reached for him but he held my wrists at my side.

  “Be still and keep your eyes closed.”

  I wanted to argue. I wanted to fight him. But the promise in his eyes urged me to obey.

  When I relaxed beneath him, he grinned and squirted more lotion in his hands. His magic hands kneaded the muscles in my arms and shoulders before skimming over my breasts and abs to resume massaging my thighs.

  I licked my lips as he massaged my feet, then my eyes popped as his teeth grazed over my toes. When he sucked one into his mouth, I wailed, unable to stop the sound from exploding out of me.

  “Be good,” he murmured as he began massaging my legs again, concentrating on the muscles of my hips, my abs, then finally my breasts. I moaned as he touched me, pinching my nipples between his fingers, squeezing my breasts together. “I’ve dreamed of doing this.”

  He lowered his head, licking across first one nipple, and then the other. I arched my back, wanting more, and he gave it. The cool air made my wet nipples tighten even further, and when he flicked them with his fingers, my body jerked at the new sensation. Having men play with my breasts had never been a turn on for me. It was a turn on now.

  He moved lower, his tongue dipping into my naval.

  Lower, his teeth skimming over my hip.

  Lower.

  His tongue pressed against me, and I cried out, twisting my hands in the sheets.

  “Shh. Be good. Be perfectly still. No moving, or I’ll tie you to the bedpost.”

  Still? Quiet? I’d fail that mission for sure. Maybe on purpose.

  “Will you be still for me?”

  Holy hell. How was he always so sexy? His low, gravelly tone should have been considered foreplay. Unable to find words, I nodded, summoning all my willpower and biting my lip as his tongue moved through my folds, searching and exploring my body for the first time. He found and circled my clitoris, pulling it deep into his mouth. He sucked hard on that little bundle of nerves, causing me to push my hips closer, eager for more. And he complied, increasing suction until it was almost painful.

  I reached for his hair, holding on while he drove me crazy. He chuckled and kissed my clit before looking up my body, his mouth glistening with my arousal. “Uh, oh. You moved.”

  My eyes widened, and I watched as he pushed off the bed and walked to his closet. He wasn’t gone long, a couple ties and the belts of both robes in his hand.

  He was serious.

  I’d never allowed a man to make me this vulnerable, but I wanted to be vulnerable with him. I wanted everything.

  My chest was heaving as he tied my hands to the bed, then did the same with my ankles, spreading me wide. I didn’t recall ever being more excited about anything in my life. I was at his mercy. And if I were honest, I sure hoped he wouldn’t show any.

  “Now, you’ll be still.” He moved up to stand next to me. “I have you right where I want you.” Getting on the bed, he straddled my chest, his shorts the only thing between me and his cock. “If you’re a good girl, I’ll let you suck my cock when I’m done. Would you like that?”

  “Yes.” The answer came out of me on a burst of air, and his lips quirked up to one side as he ran his fingers through my hair.

  “We’ll see.”

  With th
at sexy smirk still on his lips, he moved down my body until he was between my legs again. His eyes were locked on mine as he slid two fingers inside me. I let out a strange hissing sound when he began pounding into me with short, almost brutal thrusts that didn’t quite hurt but came close enough that I rode the line between pain and pleasure. Then pleasure won out and I came, crying out his name as I pulled on my restraints.

  “You’re so very beautiful,” he said, lifting his fingers to his mouth and sucking, “and your taste is addicting. I’ll never get enough.”

  Then his mouth was on me again, his fingers and tongue pushing me to and through another powerful orgasm.

  I was still panting when he wiped his hand over his mouth, then pulled off his shirt before dropping his shorts to the floor. My mouth watered as he revealed his flesh to me, one article of clothing at a time.

  When his cock popped free, I pulled on my restraints, needing to touch him, wanting to stroke the soft steel of him. But that smirk was back, and I knew he wasn’t going to set me free.

  He had other plans.

  Crawling up my body until he was straddling my chest, he stroked his cock, then lowered the tip to my lips. Sticking out my tongue, I took a first lick, tasting the drop of salty fluid that formed at the tip before taking the head in my mouth to swirl my tongue around the edges.

  Zane groaned, and I knew that, although I was powerless to move, I held this power over him. “Feed me, Zane,” I begged and those green eyes grew darker as he looked down at me. I opened my mouth and felt the weight of him on my tongue as he did as I asked.

  “Suck me.”

  His eyes gleamed as he pulsed in and out of my mouth. He didn’t go in all the way, didn’t make me gag, but he did push me to the point of needing to breathe. When he pulled out, he stroked himself while I sucked in a lungful of precious oxygen.