by Grey, T. A.
"How's the lung?" The muscle above his eyebrow ticked.
"Fine, I still have to take it easy, but the damage was repaired." She didn't mention she was still on painkillers that she technically wasn't supposed to drive on. He tilted his head to the side, studying her face, his eyes growing soft. His hand shot out, reaching for her, but it paused an inch away, and dropped to his side.
For that one moment, her breath had caught. Where had the tough Detective Lina gone, she mocked. Apparently, she'd died or was still hiding in the shadows somewhere because this Lina seemed incapable of showing anything other than her insecurities in plain sight to the world.
"I came to talk," she finally said.
He looked towards the far door—his bedroom door—and his expression grew serious. Oh God. He probably had a woman—hell probably three—stashed back there waiting for him. And here she wanted to talk. God she was lame.
"Never mind, this was a big mistake. I'm just gonna go." She pretended that her voice didn't crack a little and turned for the door. She didn't make it a step before she was caught up in warm, strong arms. Arms that made her heart feel so much lighter in her chest.
His voice was raw and filled with so much emotion. "You can't leave me now. I almost lost you once. God, I missed you." He breathed in her hair, his arms holding her tight. She was wrapped up in him and for the first time in weeks, she felt truly good.
"Why didn't you call me?" He stiffened, his muscles tightening around her, and laughed. It was a pained, ragged sound.
"Lina, I don't know how to do this. I've never, that is, I don't have relationships. I didn't know what to do. This is all very new to me. It sounds stupid but I didn't know if you'd even want to see me. After all, it was a client at my club that shot and killed you." His arms tightened at the memory, nearly stopping the air in her lungs.
"You've never just dated? Had a girlfriend," she pressed her nose to his hot neck and breathed in his familiar, delicious scent. "How is that possible? I missed you so much," she whispered so quietly she wasn't sure if he heard. Wasn't sure if she wanted him to hear. He groaned though and picked her up, wrapping her legs and body tighter, closer around him like he was trying to mesh them as close as possible together.
He was walking her somewhere, but she kept her eyes closed and just listened to his voice. "I had relationships when I was younger, but after I started this business it's been my life. I haven't needed a relationship. If I needed something, I sought it out."
"Sex, you mean?" Her voice was bitter.
"Yes. God, I missed you too. Missed you poking around my club and annoying everyone." His hands squeezed her bottom with a loving, possessive caress that sent shivers over her body.
"Is that all you missed," she asked in small, quiet voice. She opened her eyes at the sound of a door opening and saw he was taking her to his bedroom. A warm heat simmered inside her.
"No, baby. I missed you in my bed, in my arms, snapping back at me, shaking your tight little ass around me."
A bubble of laughter escaped her. "I did not shake my ass, and it's hardly tight and little."
"Yes you did and it is to me, Lina." He was pressing her back into the bed, and it had never felt more right. When he stood and started to pull of his clothes, she stopped him.
"Wait, what does this mean between us? I need to know." He smiled and resumed pulling off his jacket and started unbuttoning his white shirt.
"Just look over there," he said nodding to the other side of the room.
Lina twisted her head back and quickly sat up, gasping. Box after box of chocolates, some in heart-shaped boxes; some that looked like expensive truffles that made her mouth water just looking at them, and nearly the whole side of the room was covered flowers. Vases, bouquets, large and small bundles, some wreathes filled with roses, tulips, lilacs, and orchids. White, pink, red, and yellows. They were so beautiful. Her heart was stuttering in her chest. A burning liquid was in her eyes, threatening to embarrass her if she blinked.
"What is all this?” She couldn't look away from it all. It must have cost a fortune. She wanted to ask him what it meant but bit her tongue instead.
"I bought that for you while you were sick," he paused and she held her breath. "I wanted to make you feel better. God, it was so hard not to call. I drove by several times a week. I couldn't stop myself. I had to see you even if it was just through your window."
So this was why he'd looked uncomfortable at the bedroom. It definitely wasn't a set of sexy twins he had stashed back her but gifts for her. She swallowed hard.
"Why didn't you send them to me? I would have liked that." She panicked for a moment at answering so honestly, baring her soul. God, he could so easily stub her right now if he wanted to.
"I told you, relationship issues. I've never really done this, Lina." Hands on her legs, pulling off her heels. Lina turned back to him, her eyes widened in shock. He was completely naked and crawling towards her. He lifted her shirt and she let him pull it off her. His eyes were soft but hot and hungry as his gaze swept over her, warming and touching her in all sorts of places.
When her bra and panties followed next and he simply stood over her, his fingertips trailing idly over her thighs, she'd swear she'd never felt so close to him. He came down to her then and words weren't necessary. Her legs moved to give him space and he wrapped her in his arms, one hand in her hair, the other cupping her bottom, and then his lips were on hers.
Their kiss was one of longing and passion and something deeper. Lina felt it down to her toes and in to her heart. Their tongues twined and when he lifted to look down at her she knew this was why she'd come here tonight. This feeling inside her was what she craved. And only he could give it to her.
She burned to ask him what all this meant. But he kissed her again and slid inside her. She was so wet, so needy for him, her body let him in on a hot glide. He held her close, each thrust shooting intense pleasure through her.
He buried his face in her neck. The heat of his breath spread goosebumps over her sensitive skin. "You feel so good, Lina." He sounded...thrilled, humbled. His voice didn't have the cocky attitude it usually did. Lina knew that right now with her arms wrapped around him, his hips pumping, she was seeing the real Cade Vanderoth. And she liked it.
Then he hit a spot inside of her that was just too good. She kicked her head back and started moaning. His breaths panted faster against her neck, his grip tightened harder on her.
"Oh, baby. You need to stay with me," he panted.
Lina's eyes shot open at his words. Hope flared in her and nothing she could have done could stop it. Her hips bucked beneath his and then he filled her one last time and shot them both overboard.
Her breath froze in her throat; her eyes met his in an expression of agonized pleasure. His brow furrowed hard, his neck tendons flexing as his semen started shooting inside her. Her nails bit into his back with the effort not to scream; the shaking in her legs rushed through her, moving all over her so that only his grip kept her from flying away.
When it was done, Cade looked over her flushed cheeks and moist lips and kissed her on a groan.
The shrill of the telephone broke the spell like a hammer on glass.
Cade cursed and moved to it. Lina stifled her disappointment by turning her face away. A loud crash had her turning back. The phone on his nightstand now rested in about a dozen pieces on the floor. She couldn't stop the laugh that came.
He laughed with her and cuddled her into his side.
"I don't want anything between us tonight."
"Me neither," she said.
Chapter 16
Cade didn't just make love to her all night; he broke something down inside her. She was very afraid that if she left him that morning and never saw him again, she'd never be right. That no man could ever make her feel the same way. She felt rounded, whole, and happy. Like a key or piece in her life has been finally put together. She loved it. She loved him.
She moved around his ap
artment and felt like she was seeing more of him than she ever had. What kind of man didn't own a house? Especially a man who had the kind of money Cade did. She knew the answer now. He was married to his work. He'd been living with nothing in his life but this club and his employees. Even his parents were dead and with no siblings, he’d had nothing but this club.
She slipped back on her clothes and left his apartment. He'd left this morning to do some work, but they still had so much to talk about. There were questions she was burning to ask. But last night had been so beautiful and wonderful to her that she wanted to give him something back. Something special and a little sexy.
She grinned and made arrangements with one of the assistant managers to have a room to herself. Then she went into a changing room that she'd found while interviewing employees. Men and women's fantasy clothes of nearly every possibility were here including matching shoes, jewelry, wigs, and makeup.
Lina grinned; this was the first time she had ever used her detective skills to figure out a man's fantasy. She moved down the rows of lacy outfits, negligee, and costumes with her finger trailing over them. Finally she stopped in front of a black and pink outfit. She didn't know what to call it—lingerie? It had several pieces including lacy stockings held up by braided garters, a corset top lined with light pink fringe mixed with black. She snatched the outfit off the rack, her heart beating a little faster in her chest.
She felt like she was getting ready for a job interview and not about to seduce her boyfriend...her friend...her lover?
Shaking her head, she took off her clothes and started putting on the outfit. It was much harder than she expected it to be. It was just clothes after all, and yet she nearly poked her toes through the stocking and struggled to attach the garter belt to the stockings. By time she was done, she was certain this was a very bad idea. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths.
No, she wanted to do this. For him and for her. She didn't know exactly why this was important but knew it was. She picked a pair of tall black heels that were both sleek and sexy with a thin stem of a heel and put them on. She applied just a little bit of dark makeup around her eyes.
A knock sounded at the door, startling her so bad she nearly poked her up with the mascara stick.
"Come in.”
Alice, referred to by her friends at the club as Ms. Saigon, came in then. She looked beautiful in a white nightie that stopped just a hair past her ass. The straps looked thin and breakable. The whole ensemble with her soft dark hair down around her shoulders made her look wholesome and young, almost too real. Her almond shaped eyes were beautiful, exotic.
"Are you sure you're okay with this?"
She nodded, smiling, then bit her lip and winked playfully. “I'm flattered and excited, to be honest.” Her smiled stopped and turned serious. “How about you? I do this for a living, you on the other hand, don't.”
Lina stood and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked like she could be any of the employees who worked here. Her dark brown hair with just a hint of copper tones was curled and just a little springy. She flushed remembering how Cade had pulled on the strands and told her how much he loved her curly hair. Her heart fluttered in her chest as she turned back to Alice.
"I'm ready."
"Then let's go girly."
* * *
Cade instantly went alert. Something was wrong. The hairs at the nape of his head stood up and he felt eyes on him. Turning around he half expected to see the cold dead eyes of Darrel Krentsky staring back at him. The man's face had been haunting him ever since he pulled the trigger. But when he turned around, he saw his beautiful Lina looking...
He closed his mouth to keep from looking like a fool and scanned the area with a growl, then stalked up to her and grabbed her arm.
"What the hell do you think you're doing here dressed like that?" She smiled up at him, actually smiled.
"What? I'm just blending in if you think about it. I'm not dressed any different than most of your staff."
He actually growled. "Yeah, but you don't work for me, although that is something I need to talk to you about. People will see you like this. Come on," he said and started dragging her back where she came from.
She laughed up at him. "All of a sudden you have a problem with people seeing me wear lingerie, yet you fucked me in plain sight of at least a hundred people including two gentlemen who came in my mouth and on my tits."
He glared down at her, heat surfacing in his eyes. "Things are different now." She smiled looking thoughtful and pulled him down a different hallway.
"Where are you going," he asked, his voice dark and dangerous. She was going to get it. Nice and hard, he decided, watching her thong-covered ass jiggle perfectly with each step. His dick stood up in his pants, nearly ready to explode. The little outfit she wore made him swallow hard. He’d seen outfits like this hundreds of times, yet never had his body reacted this way. Hell, his employees practically lived in fewer clothes than this.
Yet seeing clients and employees—mostly male—turn towards her with lust-filled eyes just snapped something inside him. She was his dammit. She grabbed his hand and tugged him into a room usually reserved for clients.
He stopped frozen and looked around, his instincts telling him something was definitely wrong here.
"What's going on, Lina?"
She smiled up at him looking like a wicked little witch. He was going to spank her for this. She sidled up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. His hands automatically went to her waist, then down to cup her perfect ass. He stifled a groan and squeezed the fleshy globes.
"I have a surprise for you." He stiffened at the same time his cock leaped in his pants. Stupid thing was probably going to get him in trouble.
"What?" Anxiety had him frowning. She saw his expression and laughed, then dragged him deeper into the room and pushed him to sit on the edge of the bed.
"Well I can't tell you, that'll ruin the surprise." She danced in front of him, wiggling and shimming until he thought her breasts were going to pop free of that tight corset top.
He was struggling to draw in air by time she turned around and thrust her ass back at him. He couldn't stop his hands from cupping the warm cheeks, squeezing, and loving on the flesh. When he saw her face start to flush with pleasure, he pulled back his hand and spanked her. She licked her lips and gave him a sexy stare.
Damn.
He spanked her again, this time on the other cheek. He watched her skin turn pink and jiggle. Christ. Just as he was about to jerk out his cock and make her sit on him, one of his employees came from the bathroom. She looked young, pretty, and fresh. And he recognized her.
"Oh, no," he said, already shaking his head.
Both women smiled at him, and then hands were on him, pulling off his jacket and shirt, his slacks and shoes. They left him with nothing but his hard dick.
His throat had a hard time working. He had no choice but to watch as Lina and Alice started stroking each other. Hugging and giving each other soft, wet kisses. Hell, they made it look pretty when all he wanted was to bend Lina over and drive in hard.
"I can't do this, Lina." His words stopped when Lina pulled Alice’s spaghetti strap down her arm. Lina followed the strap down her elbow with soft kisses. Cade had to lick his own suddenly dry lips.
He forgot he'd been protesting this whole thing when the nightgown fell completely baring Alice’s beautiful, golden body. She was petite and beautiful, but it wasn't her that had him reaching for his cock. It was Lina, softly cupping Alice’s ass, and kissing her way down her chest to her small, perky breasts with brown nipples. Lina licked around her areola then flicked the tip with her tongue.
Cade groaned and squeezed the base of his cock to keep from exploding. He was so swollen, the head covered in pre-cum. He watched it all with half-massed eyes, his hand squeezing his cock, barely restraining from stroking himself to orgasm. It wouldn't take much. Just a couple of strokes and he could come. He watched as Lina lic
ked both of Alice’s breasts, then dropped on her knees to kiss her stomach and hips. Alice tossed back her head and rested a hand in Lina's hair and one on his shoulder.
He nearly jumped at the contact, so mesmerized was he by Lina’s licking so close to Alice’s shaven pussy. He shuddered when her little pink tongue darted over her smooth pussy lips. Fuck, he was going to come. He was dying to. He felt like a boy again seeing his first naked woman. He'd come in his pants then, grinding his crotch against the wall as he stared into his neighbor's window. He'd been ashamed and embarrassed afterwards. But this was very different.
Lina spread Alice’s legs wider and tasted her, her tongue disappearing between swollen pink folds.
Cade's groan was so feral it brought all eyes on him.
He didn't know what to do so he just said, "I'm going to explode." Lina's eyes were dark and smoky with hot arousal and flushed excitement. She moved on her knees between his legs and ran her hands up his thighs. Alice fell in behind her, kneeling, and ran her hands over Lina's larger breasts and nipples. Oh God, the sight nearly undid him. More semen was leaking out. Lina watched, licking her lips.
She leaned forward then and all he could feel was her hot breath on him. He strained, his hands curling into hard fists in the comforter. Alice licked and kissed Lina's neck, one hand holding a breast, the other trailing down to play with her pussy. Lina's own breath quickened, and he could smell her arousal from where he sat.
"Lina," he growled. Finally, finally, she parted her lips and swallowed him. The first dart of her tongue was like heaven...or maybe hell, he didn't know which. His hands came to her head and he couldn't stop himself from thrusting up into her mouth. He was too excited. But she didn't seem to mind. She moaned and started sucking and licking him, giving him the greatest pleasure of his life.
He wished like hell he had more eyes. He tried to watch everything. He watched her mouth sucking on his cock and watched Alice wiggling her fingers over Lina's pussy. He licked his lips wishing she were sitting on his face just then. She brought her hand into the mix and started jerking him off. God, he was gone. She sucked on him hard and starting moaning high and loud and he knew she was coming by Alice’s hand. The sounds vibrated over his cock, his thighs started shaking, and his cock thickened until finally he exploded.