by Ciara Cole
She had on a color-blocked white and black blouse over a red pencil skirt and heels. A girl could never go wrong with heels, Emily felt. She’d been going for business casual, especially since she’d had a meeting earlier at her publisher’s, but from the look on Chace’s face, she might as well have walked in naked. Maybe it had to do with the fact he seemed to be stripping her with those gorgeous gray eyes.
“We’ll pick this up tomorrow, Jan,” said Chace, hardly shifting his eyes from Emily who still hadn’t moved from the door. She watched him end the call and move from behind his desk.
“Are we still on for lunch? You seem busy,” Emily noted, while taking in the sight of her fine-as-hell man.
“I am, but not enough to miss out on a date with a sexy woman. My very sexy woman,” he said, now just inches from her. He had an arm around her waist in no time and pulled her close.
“I was thinking the exact same thing,” Emily purred. Damn, he looked good enough to eat. His navy blazer fit trimly on his athletic frame, his overall look very fresh and tailored. He had that air of laid-back luxury that was casual, yet stylish.
His hotness has to seriously be a crime, Emily decided. He had her hormones all in a twist already.
Something in her expression made Chace’s eyes gleam and she wondered if he could read her mind.
Suddenly, Chace slanted his lips over hers, taking her off guard with the kiss. Moments later, Emily regained her senses enough to duel her tongue with his, loving the deep sound of his appreciative groan.
It was a sound which deepened to a growl when he reached his hands beneath her skirt to cup her bottom. No panties. Emily grinned to herself as she heard Chace’s harshly indrawn breath, feeling him harden impossibly where his member nudged at her midsection through their clothes.
Now that he knew her guilty secret, Emily wanted to know what Chace would do. It had been spur of the moment, just as she’d made to leave the house. Then she’d thought, just do it. Chace liked her being spontaneous, especially with sex. Emily had worried how she’d pull it off since she’d never ever gone around without underwear before. All through her meeting earlier, she’d been well aware of under-dressed state. No one would ever guess, of course, but Emily had felt sexy and daring all the same.
They broke apart only when they were both out of breath. Warmed to the toes by that fiery kiss, Emily was even more heated by that look of dark desire in Chace’s now glittering eyes.
Before she could think what to say, Chace moved her against the wall. “Turn around. Face the wall, Emily,” he instructed.
Emily bit on her bottom lip, giving him coy look from beneath her thick lashes. “Let me guess…am I in time out? Or am I due for a spanking?” Her brown-eyed gaze was teasing, as she reached up slightly to lick sensuously at the firm sexy lines of his lips. Chace bit down a ragged curse.
“A spanking? I guess that can be arranged.” He snaked a hand between her legs, cupping her uncovered mound before giving it a light tap. Bucking her sex instinctively into his hand, Emily let out a needy whimper.
“Turn around, Emily,” Chace said, grinning with eyes narrowed in triumph.
Emily did as she was bid this time, waiting for what next with barely contained excitement.
“Lift up your skirt. Higher,” he commanded, till Emily had the hem in folds around her waist. Holy smokes, now she felt really exposed. The cool atmosphere of the air-conditioned office made her already drenched sex begin to tingle.
Chace had lowered to his knees and as if from another realm, Emily’s buzzing ears heard him tell her to spread her legs. Oh God, she thought, complying instantly with his demand and feeling him rest his hands on her smooth, rounded ass cheeks. She heard his deep sound of approval, followed by the words, “Damn, you smell amazing as always, baby,” in that sexy voice of his that made Emily want to cream on the spot.
When Chace dove his tongue straight into her folds without preamble, attacking her wetness with fervor, Emily cried out. Hands splayed against the wall to keep her from toppling, she couldn’t help but arch her back with pleasure as Chace explored her slit ravishingly.
Being pleasured from behind this way was new and delicious, ensuring Emily stood no chance of holding back even for a minute. As Chace expertly searched out her clit and sucked on the little bead, Emily splintered into her first orgasm, legs shaking in her sexy black heels.
But Chace was far from done. Barely giving her any recovery time, he plunged two fingers deep inside her walls, clamping on her g-spot while his other hand reached for her buttocks and landed two sharp smacks. Emily felt her ass jiggle from the exhilarating impact and gasped. Then came another whack and another. The sensation stung in ways that felt too good to be legal.
Emily couldn’t stand the torment any longer, already on the brink of another climax. She then felt Chace spank her clit just lightly, yet it reverbed all through her lower half. Almost delirious with arousal, she shuddered as she moaned, “I need to feel you deep inside, Chace. Please.”
Chace chuckled low, landing one last rebuking smack on her bouncy ass before he rose. “Turn around. I want to see that beautiful face when I take you,” he rasped.
Legs still wobbly, Emily turned to face Chace. Noting that he’d slipped off his jacket, she also saw that he’d already freed his member and it was incredibly hard and rearing. Chace had her gasping as he swiftly lifted her leg, bending her knee at his waist with a tight grip before sliding slickly into her welcoming cove.
Emily moaned against Chace’s lips, her hands grasping his face for a molten kiss as he drove gently inside of her. Slow and deep, he ignited her walls till every nerve ending both within and without buzzed to life. She moved her hips in sync with his liquid thrusts, breaking from his kiss to trace his neck with her lips, and then gently nipping the sensitive spot just below his ear.
She loved the sound of his deep groan, his maleness drilling into her at that maddening pace neither too fast nor too slow. When she least expected it, he pushed in hard, driving in with such force that she gasped helplessly. Her back was arched against the wall, giving the leverage she needed to have both knees gripped high on both sides of his waist.
Chace continued to pump into her, glorious strokes that she felt to her very depths. Gripping his shoulders, Emily stared into his eyes, seeing the stormy passion mirrored there. Watching Chace experience the same cataclysmic pleasure she was feeling made her senses reel. With just that and the sensation of him thrusting harder and faster, there was more than enough to steer her closer to the finish.
Chace had moved his lips to her ear, murmuring the dirtiest, hottest things Emily could ever imagine and setting her brain off like a ticking time bomb. He told her how good it felt inside her, so tight and wet and soft – sweet and hot, driving him crazy.
“Come for me, Emily,” he demanded. “I want to feel you explode when I’m deep inside you.”
His thrusts picked up speed, Chace holding Emily tighter against him as she helplessly went into an orgasmic freefall. Suffering a momentary loss of speech, hearing, and even sight, Emily was catapulted into a black hole of pleasure, gravitating within a blistering force field. It took Chace pressing his lips to hers in a possessive, open-mouthed kiss to snap her back to reality and earth.
He was still buried inside her, and Emily had never felt more whole, more alive. She kissed him back hotly and felt him start to move inside her again. She could tell how much he’d been in restraint, making sure she’d got her utmost pleasure. Emily had never known a more unselfish lover, and he made her heart swell, thinking how he inspired the same kind of characteristic within her.
She couldn’t wait to show him how much it meant to her to please him, too.
“You ready, baby?” she whispered against his mouth as his hips moved faster. Relishing the rugged, almost choppy pace of his thrusts, Emily knew he was closer to the edge.
“Almost there,” groaned Chace, his voice raw with the strain of control he barely held on to
. “Where do you want it, beautiful?”
Emily smiled wickedly. Chace is getting too good at reading my mind, she mused. Much as she loved the sensation of Chace releasing deep inside her walls, he seemed to know there was something she’d come to enjoy just as much. “You know how hungry I am to taste you right now?”
Her words sent a shudder through him as he powered in one last rough, taking stroke. When he slid out from her wetness, Emily couldn’t hold back a trembling moan. Already salivating for her prize, it was her turn to push Chace against the wall as she shifted places with him. Swiftly, she crouched down till she was face level with his groin, ready to take what she wanted.
Needing to only use her lips, Emily linked her hands behind her out of the way and engulfed Chace into her mouth. Her lips stretched wide around his thickness, while her tongue swirled from within. Each bob of her head sent more and more inches down her throat. She moaned deeply from their combined taste, her saliva merging with the other essences coating Chace’s throbbing, hard member.
Her eyes switched up to meet his, seeing that look of tortured passion she loved. His hips began to meet her motions, till he was all but forcing more of his hardness into her mouth. Emily’s eyes almost began to water as she deep-throated his shaft, sucking and slurping. Chace rewarded her with his groans of pleasure and soon enough with thick ropes of his warm, sticky come filling her waiting mouth.
He tastes absolutely delicious, as always, thought Emily. Even as Chace fell back against the wall, Emily continued to suck on him, then licked him clean before he guided her up to kiss her lips. They both groaned, Chace seeking her tongue and Emily pushing it accordingly into his mouth. It always amazed her how nothing felt forbidden or wrong – not with Chace. He drove her wild and eager to try everything, feel everything with him and only him.
“That was one tasty appetizer,” Emily murmured, sending Chace a teasing look from beneath her lashes. “You sure know how to keep a woman happy.”
Chace flung his head back to rest against the wall as he chuckled with warm mirth, right before swooping to catch her lips, nibbling gently. “And you, gorgeous, give one hell of a workout. Thank goodness I set up these sound-proof walls for extra privacy. You make it impossible to keep my hands off you.”
“Well I’m just as hung up on you, handsome.” And I don’t think I can ever get enough, Emily thought with an inner sigh hidden beyond her teasing smiles. Getting deeper and deeper in love with Chace…was that dangerous or just inevitable? If she couldn’t stop herself from falling harder, then wasn’t it about time she put her best into making this work?
Not for the first time, she wished the date for the wedding would arrive faster. At first, she’d been cautious, wondering if this was the right move. It had all seemed too soon. Now, a future with Chace was all that mattered. Starting with her visit to his parents this coming weekend, Emily was determined more than ever to make this perfect fantasy a lasting reality.
Chapter Six
Emily was always in total awe of the beauty and size of the grand Hammond mansion, no matter how many times she saw it. Eager as she was to smooth things out with Chace’s family, it didn’t stop the sinking sensation she had walking up the elaborate stone stairs leading to the front entrance. Not because she found the idea of the visit unpleasant in any way, it was just a slight discomfort she had with being around so much affluence.
Emily had dressed carefully, as always wanting to impress Chace’s parents. Getting along with them would be an important step forward in her future with Chace, and though he never pushed, Emily knew he felt the same about wanting her to be on best terms with his family.
They arrived early enough to make it for the family dinner. His parents met them at the door, and Emily was surprised to note they seemed even warmer than before. They had welcoming smiles and complimented how well Emily and Chace looked. Heading for the living room, they chatted easily, with Mrs. Hammond saying that some other family members would be there for dinner and were all eager to see Emily.
Slowly, Emily began to relax, feeling the atmosphere get lighter and lighter as the minutes passed. Seated next to Chace, she felt him squeeze her hand gently where it rested between them. He turned from his father to give her a small smile before his attention went back to the conversation they were having. Energized by Chace’s unspoken show of support, Emily smiled more naturally as she spoke with more ease in response to Mrs. Hammond’s questions, mostly centered on the wedding.
See, this isn’t so bad, thought Emily with a bracing inner sigh of relief.
She didn’t feel a trace of any of that distrust and dissatisfaction she’d let herself believe had once been coming from Chace’s parents. Any awkwardness seemed to have been overcome; everyone was definitely making more effort, which Emily appreciated. She wasn’t sure how much she could have achieved on her own without his parents meeting her halfway.
When the other family members began to arrive, the same light atmosphere was maintained. All adults, Emily had met a few of them in the past, so it wasn’t difficult finding ways to interact with them. Chace had a younger brother Ethan who flew around a lot on family business, so he wasn’t present. Chace’s teenage sister was at college, which meant it was mostly extended family that circulated the expansively elegant living room before dinner.
They’d circulated for a bit and now paused by an archway when suddenly, a tall, slender woman with ice-blonde hair walked in.
Emily caught the way Chace stiffened slightly beside her at the sight of the eye-catching woman. She nodded her greeting to a few other guests, scanned the room, and noticed Chace as a smile split her beautiful face.
“Hello Chace,” the woman said once she reached them.
“Jan – I had no idea you’d be here.”
“I know,” she replied with a soft laugh. “I meant it as a surprise.”
Emily noted the stilted exchange and moments later it was her who gave a start this time. Wait, this was Jan? Maybe there was someone else with the same name? Because Emily had never imagined that Chace’s business partner would be female. She had no clue why she had simply assumed that “Jan” sounded masculine. Well, there was no mistaking who Jan was now, since Chace’s next words confirmed Emily’s suspicions.
“Emily, this is Janice Cumberbatch, my business partner. I call her Jan.”
“And you can, too,” Jan said with that ever present smile now directed at Emily as their hands linked in a brief shake. “You must be Emily, Chace’s fiancée. You’re as beautiful as he told me you are.”
Emily refrained from sending Chace a glance to match her accusing thoughts about the fact that he hadn’t seen to tell Emily that much about Jan – that she looked like a runway model, for one. Thankfully, Emily had worn heels and didn’t feel too dwarfed next to the somewhat Amazonian blonde. She was dressed in a becoming black dinner dress, very demure, though quite feminine in the way it enhanced her slim and structured curves.
Every inch of the woman spelled the highest polish. Nothing out of place: flawless skin and hair, beautifully made up blue eyes, and a classy accent to go with her elegant looks.
“Thank you,” Emily replied. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Jan.”
“Jan’s parents and mine all went to college together,” Chace added, “so Jan is much like family and not just a business partner.”
Well, that would explain how come Jan turned up at this private dinner, mused Emily. She told herself to relax and stop reading unnecessary things into this situation. Some women might be intimidated next to someone as effortlessly perfect as Jan, whose age couldn’t be distinguished by Emily’s examining eye. She could be anything from early twenties to her mid thirties, but there is an ageless quality about her that doesn’t seem to come out from a beauty jar, just disgustingly awesome genes, thought Emily almost grouchily.
Still, it took several minutes for Emily to decide that Jan was harmless enough. She was very pleasant and easy to talk to. She didn’
t put on airs like many others Emily had met from Chace’s circle. And from what Emily could detect, Jan was very comfortable with Chace’s family as they all dined together. If anything, his parents treated her much like a daughter.
Not surprisingly, Jan seemed quite well informed on various topics from business to the latest reality star gossips. Laughing over the delicious food, wine, and warm atmosphere, Emily couldn’t help but let down her guard. She sent Chace a smile or two to show she was feeling in her element, but for some reason, she thought he seemed a bit distracted. What could be bothering him? she wondered.
Emily couldn’t dwell on her hunch, as she was being drawn into conversation more and more with Chace’s mother on her left. On Chace’s other side was Jan, and Emily barely registered that Jan had leaned close to Chace to speak into his ear.
She’d have been surprised indeed if she heard their muted exchange.
“Emily is really quite lovely,” Jan murmured for Chace’s hearing alone. “Does she know about us?”
Chace kept his face neutral, taking a drink from his wine before replying. “Know what?”
Jan let out a soft chuckle. “Ah, come on, Chace, you can’t keep her in the dark forever. She’ll find out anyway.”
“Why are you here?” Chace’s tone suddenly hardened. “This was meant to be a private family gathering.”
“What a way to talk to the daughter of your father’s closest friend. Who also happens to be your business partner,” said Jan sweetly, seeming unperturbed by Chace’s curtness.
“That’s business. This is different.”
Jan merely shrugged, toying with the food on her plate. “You think she suspects anything?” she asked.
“There’s nothing to suspect,” Chace gritted, He wanted to smash a fist down on the surface of the table. “Don’t push me, Jan.”
Jan smiled suddenly, resting her hand on Chace’s arm for a light squeeze. “Relax. I’m on your side, remember? That’s how it’s always going to be.”