by Keta Kendric
What was up with these unusually attractive men who claimed they were bikers? They claimed to be members of an MC, but it didn’t take but a minute with each of them to find that they were so much more than they pretended to be.
Ansel, with his charming good looks that failed to hide that bad boy peeking out, was downright sinful. For goodness sake, the man was dressed in a tailor-made suit, and his house was something out of a magazine. I was attracted to Aaron for sure. What woman in her right mind wouldn’t be? Ansel, on the other hand, had my panties drenched each time his eyes stalked my body. And the worst part was I knew he would kill me if he had a reason to.
He stood and started removing his suit jacket and tie. I gave a valiant effort, but I failed because my gaze was locked on his every move. He took his time with the task with his eyes on me the entire time, watching me watch him. Neither of us said a word until he was done and had slung his jacket and tie over the back of the nearby chair.
He made some of the space I’d put between us disappear when he retook his seat. When he peered at me with those damn intense green eyes, I forgot my own name. Nothing about a man should be pretty, but Ansel had pretty eyes; the kind you admired while trying not to get caught staring into them. They were the kind that radiated a magnetism that entranced you.
His olive skin tone against his dark hair and stubbly face added a depth to his sexiness. And his body… Good Lord in heaven! He could make a woman have an orgasm by just taking off his clothes. I denied my eyes the pleasure of looking at him by diverting my gaze as often as I was able to.
He wanted to do things to me. I could sense it…naughty things. After being caged up in the cellar at my family’s farm with dead bodies for company and a man whose heart belonged to another woman, there wasn’t much I could do to control my attraction and reaction to Ansel.
A loud thud drew my attention away from him as the floorboards creaked above us. What the heck were Megan and Aaron doing up there? This house was easily a multi-million-dollar property, so it was well put together. If the couple was causing things to creak, they were enjoying one wild reunion. A telling smile crept onto my lips although I attempted to hide it.
“I can certainly see why Aaron didn’t want me. That’s for sure. He looks at Megan like she’s the only woman in the world.”
Ansel shook his head. “Tell me about it. When I first met her, I wanted to fuck her so badly, but he wouldn’t let me.”
“What do you mean he wouldn’t let you?”
“Doc, in our world, sharing a woman isn’t an uncommon occurrence.”
My lips fell apart. “You’re kidding,” I exclaimed, appalled.
“No, I’m not kidding. But, from the start, I could see how serious my cousin was about Megan, so I didn’t push the issue with her as hard as I knew I could have. After watching her lose her mind over his death for months, I just couldn’t go there with her.”
“So, you’ve never found anyone that you didn’t want to share? Don’t you want someone that only you can have all to yourself? Someone that’s willing to be only yours?”
The last thing I wanted was to hear was him say no, but he did, and I couldn’t figure out why I cared. My gaze fell from his as I took in his fit body. Under his long-sleeve, button-up shirt, tight muscles moved rhythmically in his chest and arm areas. My hungry gaze caught his muscular thigh flexing under his pants, and I quickly returned my gaze to his while rubbing the back of my neck.
“Haven’t found anyone like that yet,” he said, reminding me of the conversation we’d started. “I’ve never felt the need to look for anyone. Besides, I don’t do relationships. I fuck on a whim when I’m intrigued to do so, and I have subs that I call when I get a taste for them.”
My brows arched high on my forehead. “Did you say subs as in BDSM?” I whispered as if I was afraid to say it out loud. I’d heard so many negative things about people who embraced that life that I was almost afraid to know any of the details.
“Trust me, Doctor. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.”
I shrugged. “I’m not knocking it. I just don’t know anything about it, and the few things I do know would lead me to believe that all you do is get off on torturing each other.”
“You’re right, Doctor. You don’t know shit.”
He almost sounded as if I’d offended him, so I decided to change the subject. “So, what’s your big plan for taking down my family?”
He ignored my question. “You said my cousin didn’t want you, but it doesn’t mean you two didn’t fuck. Did you fuck my cousin, Doctor?”
My lips fell apart as my mouth went dry. Ansel was direct, so direct in fact that he’d rendered me speechless. His penetrating, green gaze bore into me, waiting for my answer.
“First of all, that is none of your business. But if you must know, the answer is no. I didn’t have sex with August. I took care of the man for months, so I saw every part of him, but there was never a spark between us. Was I attracted to him? Of course, I was, but I could tell almost immediately that he didn’t want me romantically. I consider myself a bit of a realist, so I accepted what was clearly in front of me. But, just because he didn’t want me in that way doesn’t mean I don’t care about him.”
I was rambling and talking about sex with Ansel, caused me to shift uncomfortably in my seat. I hadn’t intended to tell Ansel all that I had, but he seemed to have a way of getting things from a person no matter what they may have wanted. He hadn’t changed his expression. His face remained unreadable as he took in my words. He also seemed to be reading my body language. Although I was uncomfortable under his gaze, I found the confidence to continue.
“Once I was around him long enough, I discovered his heart belonged to someone else. It was an eye-opening experience to watch him struggle to remember his own name, yet he’d called Megan’s name countless times in his dreams. It was powerful magic at play. The idea of his mind building a bridge over a connection that the brain had lost was a miracle. Once we arrived here and after the way he reacted to Megan, it made me understand him even more.”
The information I had just shared raised Ansel’s eyebrows. However, a conniving smile spread across his sexy lips, which were perfectly moist although he hadn’t licked them.
Why did he have to be so damn hot? He knew it too. He was the kind of man who breathed confidence and sex appeal and didn’t give a damn about breaking a woman’s heart once he was done with her. Based on the way he dressed and the large, expensive fortress of a house he lived in, I’d say he was also smart and calculating.
His home reminded me of the kind of houses my family owned from the millions they made in drug money. This was the kind of house I’d grown up in. It had a manicured lawn, authentic classic paintings hanging on the walls, and expensive Italian furniture that had likely been imported directly from its manufacturer. However, Ansel had taken things a step further than fine furnishings and a professionally decorated home. When August and I first arrived and were met by armed guards, it made me wonder if August’s family wasn’t worse than mine.
My gaze raked over Ansel’s chest before it fell to the big bulge at the crotch of his pants. I directed my gaze in another direction, my cheeks burning with embarrassment.
Had he noticed what I’d been gawking at? Did he know what I was thinking? I shook off the distraction.
“Just like that,” he said before he snapped his fingers. “You accepted that he didn’t want you and stopped trying to tempt him?”
I laughed. “Who said I tried to tempt him? Besides, I didn’t think he’d be interested in me anyway because of our ethnic differences.” Shoot! My eyes slammed shut. I wasn’t supposed to let that part slip out.
Shaking his head with a wide grin, Ansel didn’t hide his roving gaze as it scanned my body, making my nipples harden. He was playing me like a fiddle, making me spill my guts even though I hadn’t intended to. I was telling him things that I’d never even told August.
“Memory or no memory, Doc, with a
body like yours, my cousin had to have been out of his fucking mind not to at least touch you. I refuse to believe that bastard wasn’t tempted.”
Ansel’s head tilted like he was working an idea around in his brain.
“But, he and Megan…”
I could see a flood of memories flashing across Ansel’s expression as he contemplated his cousin and Megan.
“There is no coming between that. But, back to you, Doctor. Most women would have tried everything in their power to get a man to bend to her will, especially if you were the only thing keeping him alive.”
I shrugged. “Well, I’m not most women.”
“You sure the hell aren’t,” he stated matter-of-factly as his gaze fell to my lips.
His words were as stuck in my head as his eyes were stuck on my lips, distracting me until I forced myself to start talking again.
“I’ve been my family’s prisoner for three years. All sorts of plans started hatching in my head about how August may be able to help me escape them. He became the hope I’d so desperately prayed for just as much as I was hope for him.”
Ansel had no idea what his presence was doing to me. I could hardly think straight. The husky tone of his voice was laced with sin and seduction. He knew it and he wanted me to know he knew it. Yes, I’d been attracted to August, but it was a fleeting attraction that died the moment I realized he was in love with someone else. Ansel, on the other hand, set my mind on fire and my sex-deprived body had been thrown into a state of lust and confusion.
A series of knocks sounded that seemed to make the house vibrate. It was hard to sit with this seductive man knowing that August was upstairs screwing the hell out of Megan. I reached for the water I’d brought from the kitchen and took a quick swallow. A heaving breath left me as I pretended not to notice Ansel’s flirting gaze on me. I kept my sight on the coffee table and folded my arms over my chest to hide the fact that my damn nipples were hard.
“Can I ask you a personal question, Ansel?” I asked, finally glancing in his direction.
That sneaky smile on his face let me know what he was thinking, and his gaze traveled straight to my hard nipples when I accidentally dropped my arms.
“Yep. Ask me whatever you want, Doc.”
“The whole time I was with August, it had never occurred to me that Megan was an African-American woman. Forgive me for assuming, but I thought biker clubs like yours didn’t believe in that sort of thing. Do you all date outside your race?”
He pasted an are-you-kidding-me frown on his face before his gaze dropped and roved leisurely over me. I’d picked up on the signs that said he was attracted to me, but I wasn’t an aficionado when it came to men.
I’d been so engrossed with school and becoming a doctor that I’d neglected men. It wasn’t that I didn’t have desires. I had them like any other woman. I’d just learned to suppress them and accepted that I was severely lacking in the area. My smart brain warned me that it was better that I remain standoffish, especially where Ansel was concerned.
He straightened his posture, his unwavering gaze making me squirm. “Sweet Doctor, it’s a wonder you haven’t cum already. I’ve been fucking you with my eyes from the moment I saw you.”
His voice was thick and course, sending prickles all over me as my heart hammered inside my chest. His explicit words had impacted my body and damn near made me cum. I drew back with a sharp, quick gasp. I was stuck between excitement and shock, but Ansel had no problem continuing.
“Was that your way of asking if I’d date a woman like you?”
I struggled to remember what I’d asked him. We’d gone too deep into this conversation for me to lie now. I recovered quicker than I thought I would. “Yes,” answered. “I guess I was asking, but not for myself. I was just curious.” I dropped my gaze, realizing I sounded like an idiot.
“It’s okay if you were asking for yourself. As a matter of fact, I was hoping you were asking for yourself.”
His direct statements made one of my brows lift, and I decided to be honest with him. Besides, what did I have to lose? I was on the run from my own family.
“I’m what the world considers brown, not white or black. I’m not light enough for some men, but I’m not dark enough for others. And as far as my body is concerned, I am definitely not skinny enough for most.”
Ansel didn’t offer a response, but the way his gaze assaulted my body revealed more than his words ever could. He made no attempt to hide that he liked what he saw.
He waved me closer with one finger. “Will you slide closer, Doc?”
What the heck had I gone and started? I was afraid of what this man would do to me, especially after he’d admitted that he was into BDSM and multiple women—if that’s what he’d meant by subs. I slid closer, despite my reservations. My voice sneaked from my mouth, my nervousness apparent.
“I don’t know anything about what someone like you likes. I’m not interested in being tortured or being someone’s love slave for that matter.”
“Who said anything about you being a slave? That comes later, much later, Doc.”
I damn near swallowed my tongue at Ansel’s words. “So, you actually make women your slave?” I asked, my voice a faint whisper.
If there was one thing I was learning quickly about this man, he was going to be honest.
“Fucking right, I make them my slaves,” he confirmed with no hint of remorse in his tone. He grinned at my alarmed expression as he eased closer. “You can let the shock slide right off your beautiful face, Doc. I don’t mean the kind of slave you’re talking about. I want a woman to be a slave to my commands and our desires and to my fucking dick.”
I cleared my throat, surprised that I was turned on by his sharp words.
“Come a little bit closer, Doc. There is something I want to show you.”
How much closer could I get? If I kept going, I would end up on his lap. The white leather of the couch creaked as I slid closer. My gaze was merged with his and the way it roamed my body. It had been a long time since a man had paid me that much attention. I didn’t cease my movement until my knee bumped his muscular leg.
Keeping me locked in his gaze, Ansel reached for my hand. He lifted it and placed it on the thick bulge between his thighs I’d noticed earlier. I attempted with little effort to pull away, but he squeezed my hand in a tight grip.
“My dick’s been hard since the moment I laid eyes on you, Dr. Regina.”
My gaze flashed up at his after I dragged it away from where my hand was sitting. There was a confusing mixture of shock, excitement, and speechlessness flowing through me.
“Dr. Regina,” he repeated with a devilish smirk. He’d made my name sound glamorous and dirty all at the same time. I trembled with a burning lust I’d never experienced before as my hand flexed against his hardness.
“I’ve been dying to introduce you to someone I think you’re going to like.”
His hand slid up my forearm, causing goose bumps to prickle on my skin and my heart to shift into overdrive.
I jumped when Ansel’s phone rang and zapped me from the trance he’d put me in. I removed my hand from what felt like a snake in his pants.
He lifted the buzzing phone to his ear, but his gaze remained on me. “Yeah,” he answered, his tone clipped. The voice on the other end was loud enough that I heard the muffled words. Ansel’s face fell into a deep frown that caused him to stand. His voice rang with agitation as he walked away from me.
I sucked in a deep breath, just realizing he’d stopped me from breathing.
Chapter Seven
Megan
Shuffling around Ansel’s large stainless steel and black marble kitchen, I hummed and cooked up a storm. I felt bad about leaving the doctor alone with Ansel, especially after I’d caught him staring at her like she was a scoop of ice cream that he couldn’t wait to devour.
A good hearty breakfast might make up for leaving them alone for nearly a full day.
The first person to make a
n appearance was Dr. Regina. She peeked into the kitchen before coming all the way in.
“Good morning,” I greeted her, trying to gage her mood.
“Good morning,” she returned good-heartedly.
As soon as she sat down, I turned and faced her. “I’m sorry for leaving you alone with Ansel yesterday. He didn’t try to drag you down to that dungeon of his, did he?”
“Dungeon?”
Thank God he hadn’t tortured the poor woman. My question left her forehead pinched with concern and her gaze lingering on me.
“Never mind.” I waved my question away. If she didn’t know about Ansel’s playroom, she might not have been in danger of becoming his next victim.
“What would you like for breakfast? I made biscuits and gravy, grits, scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, ham, and potatoes. I also made coffee if you drink it.”
Regina gazed at me as she thought over the food choices. The thick bubbling of grits in the pot behind me sounded as the aroma of bacon made me inhale a little bit deeper.
“It all sounds so good, but may I have biscuits and gravy and bacon please?”
“I love a woman who’s not afraid to eat,” Ansel’s voice rumbled as he entered the kitchen and took a seat next to the doctor.
“Did you sleep well, Doc?” The hint of amusement in Ansel’s voice wasn’t lost on me.
“I slept fine. Thank you for letting me stay,” Regina answered.
They thought I was crazy. Well, maybe I was, but it didn’t mean I didn’t see certain things. Ansel was interested in Regina, and I didn’t know if it was a good or bad thing. He always complained about looking for a replacement submissive after he’d broken one. I presumed that lifestyle wasn’t for the weak-minded or faint at heart even if I didn’t understand it. I also noticed that Aaron cared for Regina the same way Ansel cared for me now. I didn’t believe Aaron was going to let Ansel turn the good doctor into some play thing that he’d break or throw away when he grew tired of her.
“What about you, Megan? How did you sleep?” Ansel asked. “Never mind. Don’t even answer because I know you didn’t sleep.”